The Forgotten Lake
by Chlorinda
Summary: My 1st Fanfic, a merge of 2 of my favourite stories. Pardon if I had gotten some things wrong but I haven't re-read either books recently so certain facts may have been wrongly recalled. But then again, you can treat this as a whole new story in itself:
1. Chapter 1: Lost

_(My first fanfic. Please don't be too hard on me :P I've merged a few of my favourite books, as well as some slight influences from computer games. )_

Chapter 1: Lost

They had been hiking along for days, yet they were not even close to realizing where they are.

Thankfully they weren't humans, Ruby thought to herself, or they would already been weakened by hunger.

Seth walked wearily beside her. But it wasn't because he was tired. It probably was more out of boredom than anything.

"It's weird to know that one can actually feel grateful when trapped in such a situation." Adam muttered, so softly that Ruby almost missed out on his speech.

Ruby exhaled and smiled at the same time. It was always great to have Adam around. Unlike Edward who may unintentionally 'stumbled' upon your personal thoughts, Adam's gift was that he was blessed with the ability to sense the emotions of those around him.

It was great. Whenever the animals had anything wrong with them, Adam was able to tell it straightaway that they are in discomfort.

Esme had been very supportive of her keeping animals back at home while the others had disapproved. It was bad enough that they sometimes had to resist the urge to attack humans, but it was worse that they had to put up with animals conveniently situated at home.

But Ruby could not tear herself away from thee stray dogs that she chanced upon. Moreover, she had done her part by housing them away from the main house as far as possible, in vampire terms.

How she missed them.

She stopped in her tracks when she realized Adam had stilled. Looking ahead, she understood why. It was a clearing of some sort. A small one, but nevertheless, the sunlight shone through.

"It's alright, I don't think there will be humans passing by this area anyway. Nobody will see it. Besides, we would have sensed it from way off before they could even reach us, right?" Seth argued. "I don't want to have to re-route just to avoid the clearing!"

As usual, Seth demonstrated his impatience, a typical characteristic that accompanies the young ones. He would have been 18 if he were still a normal human though he already looked like he is 25.

"He's right, you know." Ruby said.

Adam tilted his head in thought for awhile, before moving forward.

They were halfway through the clearing, with Seth who avoided looking at his two companions due to the way the sun reflected off their skin. The sight of it had looked amazing and pleasant at first, but the novelty had worn off awhile later when he realized that looking at the brightness of it hurt his eyes a lot. Suddenly, he started growling.

It was not due to fear. He had sensed something nearby and it was not human. The sound was getting louder. Like dozens of footsteps pounding.

Adam and Ruby concentrated on the trees ahead of them and waited for whatever it is to appear. It must be massive as the ground under them trembled ever so slightly.

"Seth, get back here. You wouldn't want to be knocked unconscious by whatever it is and miss out on the fun, would you?" Adam joked, always one to find humour in all sorts of situation.

Seth, who had already transformed into his wolf form, reluctantly took a few steps back, falling in line between Adam and Ruby.

Finally, the intruders burst into sight. And a sight it was!

'Filthy, gruesome, drooling and snarling. . . what?' Ruby thought, lacking a noun to call their attackers. She could easily think up of a few other choice words to describe the creatures but what exactly are they?

Whatever they are, they clearly are not intellectually-gifted. For although they charged at the three surprised onlookers with brute force, there was only strength and nothing else. No strategy, no plan, no organization in this surprised encounter.

There were not more than twenty creatures that assaulted them. And even so, they were quickly put to rest by Adam and Seth, leaving Ruby with just a few to deal with.

A swift and easy twist of the neck and the last one fell dead at her feet.

"What on earth…?" Ruby trailed off.

By then, Seth had already changed back to his human form, unable to tolerate the lack of communication with his friends while he was a wolf. He was excitedly rattled about how much faster he was able to bring the attackers down and how he had not been through that much action since….. his voice trailed off despite none of his comrades paying attention to him.

Ruby looked questioningly at Adam who was sniffing in the air. "They must have been attacked before they met us. Look at their fresh wounds." Adam pointed out. "They must have been running away from something. I don't know… I could only sense fear… And hunger" Adam added.

It must have went on for quite awhile but Seth finally realized that no one was even listening to him. What amused him, however, was that his two vampire friends were staring intently at the dead creatures lying around them.

Unbeknownst to them, a figure that had witnessed it all slipped back into the shadows where the trees lovingly enveloped his presence.

King Thranduil sat down with as much grace and pride as he could muster. For a split second, he pondered if a human ruler facing similar problems such as his would actually slump down on the chair. The orc problem was weighing on him enough and yet his scouts had reported a new sighting of three intruders in the Woodland Realm.

Thinking that they were men who unwittingly stumbled into the Realm, Thranduil had considered sending one of the scouts to deliver a plain and simple warning and set them on a direction out of his land to have one lesser problem to worry about. But things have just gotten complicated.

For, as Erurost had witnessed, their movements had been swift and their actions, deadly. For mere humans to take down 20 orcs within a short time was no easy task. Adding to the shock was Erurost's startling observation that one of them had turned into a wolf-like creature in a blink of the eye.

Instructions had been given to the Scouts to continue the surveillance more carefully than before. There was nothing more to be said, since only time, and more observation, could tell what they are up to.

Thranduil was beginning to wonder other than orcs, what other Evil lurks in the forest?

Absent-mindedly, Thranduil scratched his chin in thought when someone entered the room. Troubled as he was, Thranduil could not stop the smile from spreading across his face.

"Adar!" the Prince shouted. However, all traces of his smile disappeared when Thranduil noticed the serious look on the Prince's face.

"It's about Gollum." Thranduil stated, for that could be the only valid explanation for Legolas' pale and solemn face as his son could only look downwards and nod his head.

"Revolting" Adam said, before Seth could even ask.

"Does that make you less of a vampire now? I've never seen you guys turn away from the sight of blood just like that!" Seth said excitedly, snapping his fingers to emphasize his point.

"That isn't important. The main thing now is where on earth are we? Much as I know about Esme's understandable and forgiving nature, she would be still capable of making us feel guilty and ashamed for missing school for almost a week!"

Ruby clenched her fist at the thought of a worried-looking Esme. Her other 6 adopted siblings were bound to be off on some lovey-dovey excursions, whereas Carlisle would have been busy at the hospital as usual. Even Renesme was always off with Jacob on some random hunting trips. Adam and Ruby were the only ones who were always around accompanying Esme at home since they are still attending school whereas the rest have already graduated.

Her thoughts were abruptly cut off when she realized Adam and Seth were arguing.

"You already smell like a wet dog, I didn't know it could get any worse!" Adam teased.

"Well, you aren't any better! You smell like some vain little flower pot who had gone way overboard on perfume! I thought it'd do you some good to get into the lake before we started hunting!" retorted Seth.

Boys! Ruby thought, and rolled her eyes.

"I felt that!" Adam shouted at her direction.

"Anyway, if you guys would keep it down, I would like some peace for awhile while I try to figure a way out of here. If we hadn't all taken a plunge into the lake at the beginning of the hunt, we wouldn't have ended up so lost!" Ruby said. Good-tempered as she is, she had had enough with days and days of hiking.

She had pitied Seth because at least she and Adam did not require any rest at all, whereas Seth who was aware of this fact, had continuously pushed himself to the limit so that they may cover more distance and hopefully stumble upon familiar scent that they had left earlier.

The whole trip was a mess. They never should have left familiar territory; they never should have left Forks.

"Let them." Thranduil ordered.

"My Lord that would mean risking the entire village!" his loyal subject, Sivia insisted.

"Do you not trust our soldiers then?" Thranduil questioned, with a gleam in his eye.

Red with embarrassment, Sivia answered confidently, but in a softer voice "Of course I do, my Lord."

"Then so be it. See that it is done." Thranduil stood up from his seat signaling the end of the conversation. Sivia hesitantly signaled to the awaiting guard to pass the message down.

For awhile, Thranduil heard his loyal subject took a deep breath and was awaiting another flurry of questions directed at his decision, yet all he heard was "My Lord, if there is nothing more, I shall take my leave."

Thranduil had not yet answered but Sivia had already taken a bow and left the study room before more could be said.

Thranduil respected Sivia. He had been a great aid to the King and the people. The fact that SIvia was not one to disobey or to openly express disappointment at the King's many decisions made Thranduil appreciate this particular Elf even more, for Thranduil is a proud King and would do it his way despite protests, as long as he sees it as for the good of his people.

Having one less elf who disagrees with you would mean one less to convince. But yet this does not mean Sivia had never defied the King before.

However, Sivia had his own way of indirectly expressing himself, such as the way he took his leave. Thranduil chuckled to himself as he recalled when he had just ascended the throne and insisted that he should not have personal guards who shadow his every move. Fearing for the King's safety, Sivia had been unhappy about it and promptly sent a selected few of the elite elves in to 'show' that the palace was not completely safe to prove his point.

It was after this incident that Thranduil saw Sivia as more than just a loyal subject. He was a crafty and loyal subject, for the good of the King.

The news that Erurost had sent back yesterday was not well-received by many.

The 3 intruders had traveled much faster than he thought, and were apparently heading towards the nearest village almost as if they knew there was a settlement there. Such a strange and accurate sense of direction would not have been possible without a scout, yet as Erurost had stated very clearly that there were none, unless they had ways to communicate with a scout without him returning to them at all.

The King had to be consulted on whether the village should be abandoned.

Thranduil had thought over it the night before. They would never be able to know for sure what the intentions of the 3 trespassers were unless they came face to face with them.

It should have been done much earlier when they were far off from any settlement, but Thranduil thought that it would have been wiser to wait and see if they would just turn around and leave Mirkwood.

Now that they are fast approaching, there was no other way than to intercept them straight despite being so near one of the farming villages. It may not be disastrous after all, Thranduil thought.

Other than hunting down a few animals every few days, there was not much trouble stirred up by them.

In-between, attacks by orcs were still as per normal, unpredictable, random and annoying (as Legolas puts it). The attacks had not changed nor deviated from the norm despite the appearance of these intruders. Erurost had not been successful in getting help from the trees. Old as they were, the trees were uncertain of their intention but one thing for sure, they did not detect any hostility from their uninvited guests.


	2. Chapter 2: Wary

Chapter 2: Wary

Seth was starting to regret pulling Adam and Ruby into the water right before they began their hunt.

Doing so had invariably washed off their scent so perfectly that the combination of 2 vampire noses and 1 of a wolf's had not been able to trace back the way they came from.

Seth turned his head around as he felt Adam put his arms across his shoulders. He looked into the face of his friend to see if he could make out any emotions but could not make anything out of it. Apparently he learnt something else today; that vampires are good at masking their feelings if they really wanted to.

Despite the friendly gesture, Adam's face was blank. His eyes were focused on the distant landscape beyond the massive trees that were densely located around them.

They had long given up on finding the way that led them to the lake by smell. The scent was washed off cleanly. All possibilities of using scent to direct them were also hopeless on the 2nd day when a huge downpour practically wiped out all traces of their presence in the woods.

Being a considerate friend, Ruby had suggested trailing closely along a small stream that cuts through the forest. Seth had been very appreciative of the gesture but thanking them would have been very awkward for he was the one who had gotten them lost in the first place.

To make up for it, he had persevered day after day, insisting on covering as much distance as possible until he slumps to the ground from pure exhaustion at the end of the day.

As the sun set, Seth laid on the ground with an arm covering his eyes. His mouth was slightly open as they emitted a soft snoring sound which Ruby had found very comforting.

At night, except for the occasional calls of nocturnal animals and the soft gushing waters from the stream, it was totally quiet. An uncomfortable kind of quiet that Ruby was not used to.

Adam came back with a huge bundle of twigs and branches to start a fire.

They didn't need the warmth of the fire, nor do they need it for visibility purposes. But, as Adam had insisted, it would be extremely suspicious, and even scary, if someone chanced upon them in total darkness.

"It's the lake. You know that, right?" Ruby asked quietly.

Adam continued staring at the fire as it hungrily devoured the dry twigs, rising and falling in height with a very soothing cackling sound.

"We were lost probably as soon as Seth surfaced. Teleported. Whisked away." Ruby added.

It was another silly game that Seth had initiated. He wanted to see who could hold their breath for the longest time underwater. Before Adam and Ruby could react, he took a deep breath and went under.

Adam had shouted repeatedly underwater, which was very barely audible, that he and Ruby do not need to breathe and he should just give up. Ruby, having been unwillingly thrown into the lake as well was witnessing everything too, just for the fun of it.

Seth had either finally understood the message, or had already ran out of breath, for when he shot up to the surface to inhale, his face was quite red from the lack of oxygen.

Indeed, Adam had been aware of it. Aware of how Ruby had retraced their steps after they left the lake. How she had suggested another direction to travel at first, but then cut paths to try to go back to the paths they took to the lake at the beginning with the false excuse of the stream.

"Seth is not aware of it yet. I don't really want to make him worried for nothing. He's young and all." Ruby explained.

"I think we have to start coming to terms with it, Ruby. It doesn't help that Seth doesn't know our current circumstance. At least with him knowing, we know that we have to be alert all the time since we don't exactly know where we are. There's something awfully odd about all this." Adam finally replied.

"Let him know? But look at him! What good would it do to wear him out further? He's already so physically drained." She pointed out while gesturing towards Seth's sleeping form on the ground. "Besides, we never need to sleep. We never need to rest. Except for our occasional hunt, we are unhindered by all the needs and wants of a living being… or a wolf."

"Well, maybe a dog brain would help in the situation. You know. Shape-shifters… Whoever has heard of shape-shifters? They may have something special. Something uncanny and unexplainable that could enlighten us as to what happened and maybe even bring us back to the actual lake." Adam was not aware that his voice was too loud until Seth moved his arms to his sides and got up.

"Are we still going to try to find the lake?" Seth asked in a gruff voice with eyes hardly open.

"No, buddy. Just go to bed. Ruby and I will figure this out." assured Adam.

The skies lightened up as dawn approached. _Even for a wolf, Seth sure sleeps alot_, Ruby thought, as she cleared the remains of the fire from the night before.

She returned to Adam's side and put her arms around her brother. Both of them sat quietly facing the stream, deep in thoughts.

Ruby suddenly whipped her head around and stared intently at the trees.

It was a little too quiet. There were no winds at all, almost as if the forest had stood still, to anticipate what will happen next.

Adam was already on his feet and Seth? Well, Ruby was sure even if a volcano had erupted 100 metres away, Seth would still have been in an equally deep slumber.

For unknown reasons, Ruby's first reaction was to grab something. Anything. Conveniently located away was a tree branch, one that was adequately thick enough to withstand a few choice strikes on a normal human being.

Fortunately, from the corner of her eyes, Ruby could sense that Adam was in a relaxed position. Had he felt aggression from the approacher, he would have been on his toes, ready to pounce forward; a hunting stance that Edward had taught him.

In fact, Adam was quite the opposite. He was standing with two feet planted firmly on the ground. Hands tucked into the pockets of his jeans. Jeans that are so dirty that Ruby could almost hear Alice reprimanding him and insisting that it should be discarded immediately without bothering to wash.

There was one. And then another. And then another.

Ruby could sense more behind the trees but they stayed away except for the approaching three figures.

It was a sight to behold. Even with the superhuman ability of far and sharp vision, it took a long while before Ruby could even decide for sure whether they were male or female. They were just too beautiful. Blonde hair, just like Rosalie's, but their eyes were a twinkling blue.

"Good morning" Adam greeted them with a cheerful smile. The casualness of his tone reminded Ruby of how Adam used to greet everyone else at home in the morning as they all descended the steps to leave for their respective schools and occupation.

Ruby was amazed as she always was with this brother of hers. Just when she thought she knew him well enough, he goes on to do something more to prove she does not.

The three beautiful pointy-eared guests looked startled for awhile before they remembered their manners and bowed.

Just then, Seth gave an extraordinarily loud snore which startled them, especially the shortest one among them who actually jumped slightly in surprise and then looked down at his feet and blushed.

Ruby gulped at the thought of blood, thankful that they had hunted enough to be prepared in case they meet up with any possible occupants or passers-by in the forest. This smart move would prevent them from attacking the first human being they come into contact with, if they were humans in the first place.

And what is with those pointed ears?

"Excuse Seth over there. He's too tired out since we got lost and have been hiking around aimlessly for some time. My name is Adam, and this is my sister, Ruby. As you can see, we have already ran out of supplies and were getting pretty desperate."

The tallest among them, who was also standing nearest to Ruby and Adam, stepped forward.

"Our scouts have warned us of your presence but we suspect so that you may have been lost. We would be glad to show you the way as well as provide you with ample supplies for the journey."

Ruby was shocked at the directness of the visitor. Did he just admit that they had spied on them all the while? Ruby wondered how long this had been going on and how it could have went undetected. There must have been something wrong with their senses.

Curiosities aside, Ruby was more preoccupied with the main goal: getting out.

"Actually, we would appreciate it enough if you could just show us the way?" Ruby asked.

"It would take at least almost a weeks' journey to get out of Mirkwood. We do not think it is wise to attempt without any supplies or horses. My Lady, your company does not even seem to have any weapons for defense if you happen to meet with Orcs!" said the elf who had earlier on jumped in fear.

Ruby managed to stop a laugh that was going to erupt from her throat.

"Pardon my sister for her impertinence. But by 'orcs', do you happen to refer to those green and nasty-looking creatures that travel in groups?"

The elves nodded. Their faces were severe and serious.

"Then we would welcome the supplies you would be able to provide us." Adam said.

As he prepared to leave with the visitors, Adam pulled Ruby aside and whispered to her "I'd just put up a display and take whatever they can offer to us and see if they can provide us with a map. I don't think their directions would be enough to get us out of here. Mirkwood sounds more like a name for this forest. Meanwhile you stay here with Seth and when he finally wakes up, warn him that we are being watched and to control his transformation."

Ruby nodded. Adam squeezed her hand and then left with the other two pointed-ears.

Trying to be as polite as possible, Ruby waited for a few minutes that seemed to drag by. Finally, she asked "Are you not intending to leave with them? They've been gone for some time."

"Dhother asked me to stay. In case you or your friend may need anything." said the shy elf who had jumped in fright earlier on.

An hour passed. Ruby, who was at first quite irritated that they left another spy behind became thankful instead that she had a companion to chat with while Seth remained dead to the world. His snoring, the only sign that proved he was still alive.

She learnt a great deal from the little elf called Castril, who although was taller than her, was considered to be relatively small-built when he stood next to Adam and the other two elves, Dhother, whom Castril said was one of Mirkwood's area commander (whatever that meant) and Erurost.

Mirkwood was their home. And the fact that it had been repeatedly attacked by groups of orcs at random intervals did not bode well, thus they had sent scouts to patrol the forests as a security measure.

"You seem to be telling me too much. Aren't you afraid that we are with the orcs?" Ruby teased.

"Aren't? What is that?" Castril looked at her for a moment but continued "We trust King Thranduil and his decisions. If he decides that you are not a threat, then you are not. Your brother had also mentioned earlier that you are lost and are trying to find a way out, did he not?"

"Then I must say you have a fine king!" Ruby praised and Castril seemed to like that Ruby had commanded the king on his fine judgment. He did not hide his pride, with his chin held high and a proud smile on his face.

_Poor guy,_ Ruby thought. _Too gullible and trusting. I wonder what would this King Thranduil have done if he knew what we really were. _

"So what are you?" Castril asked.

It was Ruby's turn to almost jump in shock. "What?" Ruby said, just to make sure that she did not misunderstand Castril's question.

"What ARE you?" Castril repeated. "You know, I am an elf, and you look like a man, but then again you do not resemble one."

"Why do I not look like a man?" Ruby probed.

"I do not know." Castril replied with a sheepish smile. "You talk much less. You smile much lesser. And most man would not have been able to hear us approaching but you and your brother were already expecting us when we arrived."

"Well, Castril, I… do not really know how to explain it to you." Ruby replied, hesitantly. She felt bad that she was hiding something when Castril had been so open and direct with her about everything.

"Is it that you are a Dunedain?" Castril pressed on further.

"A Dunedain?" Ruby repeated after him.

"I knew it!" Castril exclaimed.

Ruby made a mental note to herself that Castril sometimes seemed a little too engross in his own speech.

Castril rattled off, reminding her of how Seth goes on and on all the time even when no one is listening. The Dunedain answer suited her fine for Castril had stated how he had always heard of the race exactly like a Man but with a much longer lifespan_. That description suites a vampire I guess,_ Ruby thought. But something made her intercept Castril's speech again.

"How old did you say you are?" Ruby asked incredulously.

"215." Castril replied.

"But… you look…"

"Elves are immortal. I thought that a Dunedain would have known that." Castril raised a brow and looked at her.

"Of course I do." Ruby defended. "I just tend to forget what with everything that has been going around here."

Luckily, Castril seemed to accept this explanation and continued rattling off from how Mirkwood hardly gets visits from other Races to why he signed up for the army to serve Mirkwood as soldiers were badly needed to fend off orc raids and that.

Adam on the other hand was having the time of his life. His love for travelling was fueled by his interest in the different cultures and lives that people lived in the different countries.

Needless to say the elves intrigued him. And for now, it was their weapons that fascinated him.

"These are so primitive!" marveled Adam as he held up a bow and a sword. The elves did not express it aloud but they were envious of the way he had held up the sword with relative ease.

Some of the inexperienced soldiers among them had difficulty wielding the sword and this Man came and picked up the sword like it was a piece of feather.

But Adam felt it all. The sense of awe they projected when he picked up the sword hit him like a bolt of lightning. Many bolts of lightning, actually. He mentally slapped his own forehead for forgetting to behave more like a fragile human, and then made sure that his hand held the weapon with more stiffness in the hope that it would give them the impression that he found it heavy as well.

"Primitive?" exclaimed the blacksmith. "I can assure you my lord, that these are one of the best that we can offer in these camps! Of course you may find better ones from your towns but we are just a temporary encampment."

Adam had not meant to insult the poor blacksmith who looked disturbed at the accusation. But how was he to explain the concept of guns and missles to them?

Before he could even try, Dhother had placed a bag gently on the ground and said "Everything you will need for the journey out and even more."

Adam was tempted to ask what the hurry was but decided not to. If Dhother wanted him to know, he would have told him.

"For you and your companions' safety, King Thranduil would also have us escort you to the border."

It was an instruction, not an offer. Adam smiled politely and nodded. King Thranduil must be a very wise king. Or else, he had very good scouts.

"Castril?" Ruby called. "Before we leave, do you mind plucking some flowers for me? I would like to share them to the maidens back in my homeland since the flowers here are so breathtakingly beautiful unlike the dull flowers we have back home." Ruby stared deeply into Castril's eyes with a shy smile, hoping that Castril would do as she say.

Ruby was confident that she had hit the right spot. Through their conversation, she had easily marked out that Castril was extremely proud of his kingdom. Moreover, no mortals had ever resisted a favour she had asked of them. She was not too sure about elves but surely they should not be too far off from them.

Castril nodded and got on his foot in a second. _So_, Ruby thought, _elves are pretty fast too_. She briefly wondered who would win in a race. The shape-shifters or the elves.

Maybe the shape-shifters. They were incredibly fast. Afterall, they were able to easily outrun a fleeing vampire. Ruby shuddered at the thought. It was not a good topic for imagination.

As soon as she was sure Castril had covered some distance between them, she proceeded to wake Seth up by shaking him as gently as possible.

Maybe it was due to her nervousness to transmit the message, for Adam and the other elves would be back anytime, but her waking Seth up was anything but gentle.

When Seth finally opened his eyes still heavy with sleep, Ruby summarized the happenings to him as quickly as possible.

"Is this some kind of a joke?" Seth said, half smiling, half annoyed at being wakened up. "I'm sorry I went ahead and took such a long nap but really, this…" he never managed to complete his sentence.

At this most opportune time, Castril decided to return and Seth could not help but stare at him with shock.

Ruby put her hand under Seth's chin and shut his mouth for him. His jaw looked like it would have reached the floor if he kept it open like that.

"I see you have awaken, Master Seth." Castril remarked. Ruby could imagine the thousands of things going through Seth's head at that moment. And she is right.

Seth thought back to Bella, who had been beautiful even when she was a human. But when she transited to become a vampire in order to survive the pregnancy, she became even more beautiful than ever.

It was hard to describe. There was something different about Bella. Maybe it was attributed to her vampire charisma associated with immortality? Seth could not make it out.

Seth was also not new to the way a vampire could use their looks to achieve desired effects in their conversation partners. To hold a person's attention if they mean to. To seduce, attract, ensnare, or to threaten, intimidate or daunt.

But this elf... as Ruby had called them… was… was…

Seth was knocked out of his daydreaming when he felt an elbow against his stomach.

"Ow!" He shouted.

Ruby was glaring at him. "I believe Castril here had just said hi to you."

"Hello Castril. It's a pleasure to meet you." Seth managed to squeak out while still reeling from the pain. He put forward his hand to shake Castril's but the elf only stood back and looked at his palm inquiringly.

"I apologise for I am not used to the customary greetings of the Dunedain." Castril responded to the open palm by bowing instead.

Seth was about to question further about what he meant but stopped when he realized Ruby's angry glare for him to shut up or risk being strangled.

But her face changed dramatically to an angel's within a split-second when Castril turned to show her the flowers.

"Vampires." Seth muttered under his breath, but looked away innocently when Ruby managed to shoot a murderous look at him while Castril was preoccupied about describing the names of the flowers he had picked.

Adam rejoined them half an hour later with a huge supply of bread for Dhother was confident that they would be able to hunt down some animals with the weapons provided. Ruby knew that the only person who would have use for the bread was Seth. Even then, he may still choose raw meat over bread. Out of goodwill on her part, she will personally make sure that Seth finishes the bread.

Her spirits lifted a little at the thought.

However, she did not like the idea that there would be horses for them to travel on. They would be much faster on foot. Moreover, how would the horses react when they go off for their hunts. Or maybe they could even feed off the horses.

Ruby gave a wry smile at the thought. _And the elves thought that the bread would be food when it would actually be the horses. _

"They will escort us out of here for it is dangerous." Adam told them.

"What? Then what about the lake?" Ruby hissed.

"Is there a problem?" a concerned Dhother asked.

"Oh, it's not a big problem. It's just that when we stopped by a lake earlier, Ruby had left her vanity mirror behind. We promised her that when we have ascertained our directions, we would go back and retrieve it." Seth explained coolly.

Maybe it had to do with hanging around the other vampires all the time, but Seth was beginning to get better at thinking on his feet. Ruby was inwardly relieved at his ability to aid them in avoiding further questioning.

"We would be glad to assist you in getting there. But will you know your way to the lake?" Erurost questioned.

Ruby asked "We do not know the way back for we are completely lost. Would you guide us to any lakes in the vicinity? We would be able to recognize it from there."

_Finally, this is getting somewhere, _Ruby thought.

"We do not know of any lakes situated within Mirkwood. There are only springs with the occasional rivers and streams running through the forests." Castril quipped in.

"No lakes?! Then what had we passed by earlier?" Ruby said, exasperated.

The elves looked embarrassed at her outburst and Ruby restrained herself. Adam and Seth were frowning at her in disapproval.

"I'm sorry, it's just that the mirror means a lot to me and I would really like to get it back. We were at the lake when we realized we are lost. We should not have been more than a few days journey away from the lake."

Ruby realized her mistake as soon as she said it. By 'a few days' journey', she referred to the maniacal distance covered by 2 vampires and a wolf. Not a couple of good-looking elves on horseback.

Adam seemed to have realized the same for he corrected her "It had been almost a week, my dear sister. Not mere days. We will retrieve your mirror." He turned to the elves "we cannot thank you enough for your invaluable assistance. But if it is more convenient for you, we would prefer to travel alone since we do need to find the lake first."

"We will go with you. The forests are not safe. Though uninvited, you are still guests of Mirkwood. It is not the practice for us to leave our guests in the wild to fend for themselves." Dhother stated.

Ruby bit her lower lip. If there was sarcasm in his speech, Ruby did not detect it. Thus, she could not establish whether the comment was said as an insult or just a statement. Being a military disciplinarian, maybe Dhother had some problems with putting things across gently? Castril's too-detailed introduction of Dhother in his tell-all conversation had hinted many times of a strict and straightforward authoritative figure.

Which meant that this particular elf's vast experience gained from his immortal life would have led him to have certain suspicions about them. It did not help that Castile had mentioned earlier that seldom were there visitors of other races in Mirkwood.


	3. Chapter 3: Allies

Chapter 3: Allies

Our 3 friends hesitantly approached the horses they were presented with. Seth was doing his best to get on the horse, not because he had trouble with getting up on one but the horse was restless and uneasy with the scent of a wolf Seth had on him.

"Easy, boy. . ." Seth said, while doing his best to calm down the horse. Not that it helped alot. The poor animal looked just about to gallop off on its own anytime.

The Elves looked on in bewilderment. Their horses were not comparable to those of Rohan but they were of good lineage within the Woodland realm. Or, at least good enough to be able to allow a complete stranger to mount up on.

Ruby and Adam were more preoccupied in their thoughts though their line of sight were trained on Seth struggling helplessly with the beast.

Their horses had been wary but allowed them to mount with little difficulty though Adam was quite sure the horse had shuddered when his cold hand came into contact.

_The horses will slow us down considerably_, thought Ruby, but there was little she could do to refuse the supposedly kind offer from the Elves, since they are the occupants of this world they unsuspectingly stumbled upon.

Adam, however, was more worried about getting back. Even with the Elves' help they may not be able to find the lake. And supposing if they could, how on earth are they going to get back? By jumping into it again? He sure hoped that the Elves will not be too upset that the 3 guests they were trying so hard to chase out ends up disappearing in a lake.

It had barely been minutes into their horse-riding journey when Ruby heard a swishing sound right past her ear.

To others it may have been viewed as a very narrow escape, but fact was Ruby had already anticipated that the arrow would miss her, and thus promptly stayed still.

The next arrow that flew with much more accuracy was caught with one hand, and subsequently thrown back at the shooter, impaling him through his ugly skull.

Ruby turned around to face the Elves, expecting some sort of defensive action to be taken against the sudden attack and was surprised that these filthy creatures that the elves called orcs, had already surrounded them.

The way they snarled and drooled and circled them was not a very nice sight.

"Seth?" Ruby called out. She could see him shuddering, threatening to shift into his wolf form that was more adapted to such unavoidable dangers. Seth had once likened the vampire's craving for blood with the way they morphed into their wolf forms when they are threatened or agitated.

And this was one great example of what would have caused them to transform.

The Elves barely noticed for they were pointing their arrows directly at the enemies.

To their credit, they valiantly surrounded the 3 of them. There were considerably more orcs this time round.

"Time for confessions…" Adam said, although it was directed more to Ruby and Seth.

_Darned. This must be one of those flabbergasting 'Adam-y' times again,_ thought Ruby.

"Look, guys, Elves, occupants of what you call Mirkwood…" Adam started. None of the Elves made an effort to move, still concentrating on the enemy.

"We are not who you think we…" Adam was rudely cut off. An orc had attempted an assault and was promptly shot.

The next few seconds went by in a flash as a flurry of actions started. The orcs advanced in simultaneously while the Elves let loose their arrows to hit them before they could reach them.

If anything, the Orcs were poor archers. Most of their arrows were fired blindly. The occasional accurate ones would only graze the arm of an Elf, causing only superficial wounds to the victim.

Ruby had an all too familiar howl that could only belong to a dog. Or wolf. And in this case, Seth. She jumped off her horse in a flash and ran towards him. An Orc was about to bring an axe down to the unconscious wolf form when he found himself hurtling through the air instead.

Ruby could feel the anger rising up in her. The sight of Seth so badly injured was invoking a surge of rage within her. She looked up and met a pair of dark eyes looking straight at her despite the scene of battle taking place around them.

She knew then, that her brother had given her consent to do whatever she deem fit and she let out a hiss.

Edward had refused to allow Bella anywhere near him when he is hunting; And it was for a good reason. For when a vampire hunts, it is as if a dark immortal beast had taken over their body. However if there were any space for logic and reason to remain during their possessed state of mind, it was anger.

It was fury that allowed them to be able to exact revenge and to protect. Anger was that little shred of humanity they hold on to that keeps them from turning into a complete animal (no offense to the shape-shifters).

And today, it was this very same 'reasonable and logical' fury that kept the Elves safe for Adam and Ruby did not attack any that stood in their way. It was particularly aimed at the Orcs who had injured their friend so badly.

Seth would definitely be alright, for he was still breathing. He probably had broken many bones but they would heal alright. Any injuries that the shape-shifters usually came across were immediately referred to Carlisle, which explains why Ruby and Adam could only help out the only way they knew how, and that was to settle the score on his behalf.

Both of them had been immortals long enough to have forgotten the feeling of physical pain. But it was evident to the entire Cullens family that despite the fast healing abilities their shape-shifter friends had been blessed with, no doubt the healing process was equally painful, if not more intense, due to the rapid speed at which the body recuperates.


	4. Chapter 4: Exploit?

Chapter 4: Exploit?

"Fascinating news!" King Thranduil muttered, more to himself than anything.

"The cluster of Orcs have been wiped out successfully. Dhother and his party are also able to divert them away from the village." Said Sivia, who was trying to emphasize the importance that the village is safe from the Dunedain visitors and their animal friend.

But King Thranduil was more delighted with the news that the Dunedain had been of such great help.

"It would do well to have them here, would it not?" King Thranduil asked, wanting to hear Sivia's opinion on the matter although his mind was already made up.

"My King! You mean to serve Mirkwood?" Sivia asked. Thranduil found it comical that Sivia's lips were twitching somewhat. Sivia must have been horrified at the thought.

The King nodded his head in silent agreement, with a soft smile playing upon his lips.

"My Lord, they may be skilled warriors but we are still undetermined as to what their animal friend is! They may have some ulterior motives that we are not aware of! We may even be falling into their trap should we invite them to work with us in defending the borders!"

"It is with fear that these reports were brought back to us from Erurost and Dhother."

"I have written a letter to Strider. He will be able to disclose and perhaps even explain more about this uncalled for company. But as for now, we must get back to other pressing matters. What is it about the Lady Reen's new policies?"

Sivia welcomed the change of topic on to the matters that were more familiar to him. Politics were afterall more comfortable to deal with than those problems concerning the Dunedain party whom he had already condemned as potential trouble-stirrers.

"You're such a whiner, Seth." Adam remarked. "I bet any of Ruby's mutts would have made less noise if they got injured."

"They are NOT Mutts!" Ruby defended. "They are just mix-breeds okay? Stop using that degrading term!"

Seth added "Yeah, Adam! Stop using that degrading term! And even if it were any of Ruby's mutts, they would have been well dead!"

"Seth!" Ruby shot back.

"Sorry, I forgot." Seth apologized sheepishly while stretching his back. He was already feeling much better as each minute passed by. He was lucky enough to be spared from broken bones though it looked like he had sustained quite a few.

He had forgotten his place when he tried to charge straight for an Orc but was knocked unconscious headfirst. Back where he came from, enemies do not wear any form of armour, and they definitely do not charge headfirst into sickeningly sweet-smelling vampire friends of theirs. The smell alone was enough to remind him that they were as tough and durable as stones were.

The headfirst collusion was something he had not bothered to explain to his bloodsucking friends because they would have howled… back at him, with laughter. Whenever they or the elves asked, he feigned that he could not recall anything and that trying would give him a headache.

Adam seemed to have gave him a queer look when he first gave that explanation but thankfully did not press on further.

Not long after this short exchange of words was over, Castril was soon occupying Ruby's attention again. It was a common sight. The seemingly young elf seemed to have a lot of things to share with her, from how each tree was relating a different story of things that have passed, to how each pebble and stone had its 'own' language that hums to them though the elves may not necessarily understand them.

Ruby had always been easily interested and drawn into such conversations regarding Mother Nature. She was especially intrigued by the fact that the Elves could communicate with plants and sometimes wished she had this special talent instead of flying.

Yes.

Flying.

To her, it was probably the most abnormal and useless talent out of all the vampire talents she had heard of. With superhuman strength, their jump was enough to get them unnaturally far. But there was no control over which talent you are 'allocated' with when you turn into a vampire. Some of them had none at all, though she sees it more of a luck than an exclusion theory.

Since she was young, she often had dreams concerning flying. It was as intense as if she could really feel herself floating in the air while she slept.

Ianin was breathless when he finally kneeled in front of Thranduil.

"My Lord, Strider told me to get back to you as soon as possible. I did my best."

The King took the letters from his hands and then helped his stumbling messenger up to his feet. "You have done a good job. Now, rest." he said as he patted the elf's shoulders.

The messenger looked like he hadn't slept for days. Seeing an elf with such a disheveled appearance, Thranduil wondered what the rush was about as he tore open the letter from Strider.


	5. Chapter 5: Hunger

Chapter 5: Hunger

As the days passed, it was evident that Adam and Ruby seemed to be changing. It was physically obvious.

The colour of their eyes had darkened considerably, and they became more and more restless that they were starting to resemble humans.

Seth very welcomingly finished Adam and Ruby's share of the food that the elves had cooked over the past few days of traveling. The transition was done so professionally that no one else had noticed, but as Seth's food was fast disappearing from view, one of his friends would unload their share onto his.

Adam shared his wonderful idea. One that was probably borne out of desperation.

"Dhother?" He began.

The elf looked at him questioningly.

"I am thinking that we are beginning to overstay our hospitality here. The lake is still nowhere to be found and the three of us greatly appreciate you and your fellow soldiers' patience in accompanying us to look for it. But surely, there must be something we can do to repay you."

"Do not think much of it." Dhother replied. "We obey King Thranduil's instructions and are just doing as he commands."

Ruby was thirsting for blood, but hearing this exchange made her winced. The guy surely does not mince his words.

"Surely you could at least let us do something. You know… We could take turns to hunt and provide food instead of letting you do it all the time."

Some of the elves frowned. It was then clear that they were afraid that the visitors they had been escorting would just take off and disappear, leaving them unaccountable to their King.

"We could leave Seth here. Afterall, he would only hinder us." Adam hoped that this little sacrifice would be enough for the elves to accept.

Seth had already taken a deep breath and was prepared to protest, but then held his tongue at the last minute. Ego aside, he had no right to deny his friends their food, especially when it was him who had been finishing their 'human' food for the past few days. Adam's little idea was good enough to carry over.

The Elves would not be able to think of any reason to stop them and so Adam and Ruby could finally have their raw animal blood to quench their thirst.

As evening approached, Ruby felt Castril settling down beside her. She looked at him as he held up a finger with a bead of blood near the tip. "Stupid thorn. I just wanted to give this to you." Castril held up a flower with his other hand.

Ruby gulped. It looked delicious. It was like looking at those cook books when you were extremely hungry. Enticing, checked. Drooling, checked. But there was no smell to complete the urge to attack.

Ruby found that if she closed her eyes and focused her sight elsewhere, she was able to push the idea of attacking Castril out of her head, which she had better do so now.

"Thank you." Ruby managed to croak. This only made Castril more concerned on whether the hunt had been too strenuous on a petite lady such as her.

Dhother had consented despite voicing his views that only two hunters may not be able to provide a good enough meal for the entire party of 15. But Adam assured him and Dhother found that there was indeed nothing to worry about.

Ruby and Adam had returned soon enough with an astonishing and bountiful harvest of antelopes that are already prepared for cooking. Adam claimed that this was so that they could begin cooking as soon as they had returned. Moreover, it was easier to carry it back to the camp, but Seth knew better.

All three secretly hoped that none of the Elves noticed how the parts were seemingly lacking in blood as the delighted soldiers fussed over the bags of catch that they had placed down on the ground.

Dhother was just about to change his impression of the Dunedain. _They are indeed skilled, Maybe even more qualified than the Elves themselves despite their age difference numbering centuries_, thought Dhother_._ Dhother found himself thinking a way to petition to the King of how they could facilitate a possible training exchange between the rangers and the Elves.

One of the last things on Thranduil's mind right now would be a Dunedain, much less an exchange program.

Strider's reply denied any knowledge of those whom asked about. The Dunedain had no reason to lie, busy enough as it was with the orc attacks that are happening to human settlements as well. Thranduil had to humbly admit that it was the Elves that had been mistrusting of all other Races.

So if they were not Dunedain, and obviously not from the Race of Men, who are they?

"My King!" exclaimed Sivia, as if his ruler had gone mad. "But he is your Heir!"

"Heir or not, Sivia, Legolas is capable enough to take care of himself. Unless you doubt the ability of our army…" King Thranduil finished, with an eyebrow raised.

"To meet with guests of the Realm is only basic courtesy, and something to be expected of from a King. Moreover these guests whose presence is obviously causing you much uneasiness have actually stood by Dhother and his party against the orcs. The village you so wanted me to evacuate was thus saved from any unsuspecting orc attacks."

Sivia knew Thranduil was putting his very own son at risk, but why? Surely fighting off a group of orcs was not enough proof to determine whose side these visitors are on.

"My King, heir or not, Legolas is still your only son."

"Then will you go in his stead?"

"My Lord?" Sivia almost stumbled backwards at the suggestion.

"Sivia. Legolas will have to learn to face these situations sooner or later. Treat it as one of the obstacles he will face as he eventually succeeds the throne. They fought side by side with Dhother. I see no reason why any harm should befall Legolas. Maybe our Prince could learn a thing or two from our guests." Thranduil smilingly said.

It had not escaped Thranduil's observant eyes but Legolas could not help but blame himself for Gollum's escape. A little kindheartedness on Legolas' part went awry when Gollum used one of his little 'outings' to escape from the Elves' imprisonment.

Thranduil's trial for Legolas was not just to train his son, but to also take his mind away from this letdown.

"Have Erurost summoned. I would have him deliver a message." Thranduil ordered the guards, as he sat down and proceeded to write out his letter to Dhother.

As Dhother read the note, he could feel another pair of eyes trying to catch a glimpse over his shoulder.

"I do not know how much of it you have managed to catch while peeping over my shoulder like that," Dhother said, "but whatever you've seen, do not mention any part of this letter to them."

He proceeded to walked away, but turned around to face Castril again, adding "Especially the lady."


	6. Chapter 6: Disunited

Chapter 6: Disunited

It was the closest to a body of water they could find, that was not associated to the bubbling spring.

But the trees looked and felt familiar. You do not need to be an elf to even feel that.

Seth was in a squatting position, carefully sniffing the area. Having already shape-shifted in front of the Elves, he no longer hid the instinct in him to behave like a wolf.

Adam was being as cordial as possible to the Elves, whose silence sometimes got on the nerves of Ruby.

The Elves had an inexplicable way of making her angry. They were silent most of the time, as most immortals usually are, but because the vampires are already used to living around noisy chatty human beings, the presence and behaviour of these beings with the same everlasting youth irked Ruby.

Maybe it had to do with the little smile that always played at the corner of their lips.

Seth and Adam liked the facial expression, knowing that the origin of this slight smile they had was because the Elves were happy and contented. There was a kind of optimism and enthusiasm towards life that was in the very air around them, despite the occasional and continuous orc attacks which were swiftly dealt with by the Adam and Ruby (with Seth being assigned as a referee to count which vampire brought down more of their attackers).

That little smile made the Elves looked playful and funny at times. They were great companions and the guys appreciated it for being stuck with Ruby too long was boring at times. Especially when she starts going on about how Esme must be so worried about them that it brought the reality and seriousness of the situation back in their face.

Not that they were not worried about getting back to the world they came from. They just did not like to be reminded for the umpteenth time about it.

Ruby defined the little smile as a kind of smirk. A smirk that says: I know something but you do not.

The respect and awe that she had at the beginning towards the Elves were starting to waver as her patience runs thin.

However, there was no doubt to her that Castril was a good friend and a companion. Most of the other Elves generally leave her alone almost as if they were afraid of her.

Well, they should be.

Ruby even toyed with the thought that if they managed to find a way back, she should bring Castril along.

Esme would love him to bits. He would have been a perfect son to her, although Esme did have enough adopted children to keep her hands full, but Castril had a kind of childlike air about him that the others did not.

Maybe it had to do with the torment and pain that each of Esme's children went through before turning into the immortal they were today. It aged them beyond their years.

Ruby was just wondering where her adorable companion was when she realized that a new group of Elves had joined their existing camp.

It was apparent that one of them was of a significant rank for the others bowed down when he passed by or lowered their heads whenever they spoke to him. From where she was hidden among the vegetation, she could make out that this new Elf looked exactly as the others. They all had the same blonde hair, blue eyes, and is hell of a good-looking.

_There you are, _Ruby thought, as she spotted Castril standing impatiently behind Dhother as he was speaking to the newcomer.

She controlled her laughter when she realized what Castril was trying to do.

He was eagerly waving to get the attention of Mr. Another Good-looking Elf without Dhother's awareness.

If the Elf had noticed Castril, he was expertly hiding it. But he must have noticed, for Castril's actions to capture his attention was ridiculously dramatic, and Castril had already stopped moving and was kneeling down pretending to adjust his boots just as Dhother happened to turn around to look at him.

Dhother is no simple character. He seemed to have almost been able to sense that Castril was up to something earlier on. There was no doubting his capabilities and his appointment as one of the Generals of Mirkwood.

Ruby pondered about how sharp the eyesight of the Elves actually are. Castril had said it was better than humans, but than the eyesight of a humans were rather limited. She briefly wondered how restricted the sight of an Elves are. But for now, she wondered if it may have sharp enough that Dhother could actually see Castril waving through the reflection in the other Elve's eyes?

The Elf then spoke and Dhother took a few steps back, signaling the end of the conversation they were having earlier on.

It must have been a greeting to Castril for the little one stepped forward instead. They hugged each other and stepped back, grinning like kids. Castril placed his arms around the Elf and together they walked nearer to Ruby's direction.

Ruby thought that Castril was going to introduce this new friend to her but it was not to be. Apparently Castril had not even realized just how close they were to her when she realized Castril was speaking in hushed tones.

"My dear Prince Legolas. There you were telling me how busy you are and here you are with us acting as an escort! What next?" Castril asked jokingly.

"My dear Castril, a Prince will have to obey his King even if he had been asked to trim all the hedges around the castle." The Prince good-naturedly teased back.

Castril defended, "Now, my Prince, do not bring up the past. You did not shoulder the blame alone for I risked myself by returning to help you!"

As they teased each other like old friends do, they were getting closer to Ruby, who had to stop breathing because she recalled Castril mentioning about their acute sense of hearing as well.

She hoped against hope that the trees surrounding her would not disclose her whereabouts to them.

They stopped about sixty feet away from her. The trees did not give her away afterall, for they do not know that her hearing abilities were comparable with that of an Elf's.

"Why?" Castril asked.

"What do you mean?" the Prince asked.

"A Prince is not an escort to anyone, especially guests that are not even Elves."

"The King wanted me to ascertain who the visitors are." Legolas explained. "Strider knows nothing about these self-proclaimed Dunedains."

"I would have guessed as much. Their garments do not even fit the dark obscure green and brown colours that the Dunedain are always clothed in. They did not even have horses when we found them. Did Strider not mention anything else? They are not Orcs, for sure. We have fought with them side by side."

Ruby was beginning to have second thoughts about Castril. Lovable or not, she no longer knows whether it was all a pretense.

Sure they were in the wrong wrong at first for trying to deceive the Elves. But surely this white lie was committed for a good reason. What would they say if they tried to explain that they were immortals as well but lived off the plasma of animals as a substitute for human blood?

She decided not to hide any longer. They would not have thought that she is able to hear them from so far anyway.

"Castril?" She acted surprised only when she was almost right in front of them.

Castril broke into a wide smile when he saw her.

Her heart was just about to melt. Castril's facial expression was one of a young child's whose parent had come to pick him up after school.

Regardless of how much Castril may doubt them, Ruby was sure there had to be a certain portion consisting of genuine friendship. She could not deny that knowing Castril was probably one of the best things that happened in a long time.

His infectious laughter, the way he stared in wonderment when Adam and Ruby's skins reflected sunlight like bits and pieces of 'mithril' as Castril called it.

Adam had explained a way out of the weird situation, saying that it was a kind of beauty-related chemical that they had put on their body to prevent the sun's damaging rays. Apparently, the male Elves were either very vain themselves, or they wanted their partners to 'shine' as they had, for they even tried placing orders with Adam. A list of names was neatly written on a scroll and passed to Adam later on that evening, much to Seth's amusement.

"Are you alright, My Lady?" Prince Legolas stepped forward, offering his hand to Ruby.

It was then that Ruby realized she had been daydreaming a little too long even though she was already standing in front of Castril and Legolas. She shook her head absentmindedly and put on a polite smile, waiting for Castril to make the formal introductions.

"He makes my hair stand on an edge. See the way he looks at us?" Seth asked.

Ruby knew exactly what Seth meant. Ever since they were introduced, Legolas became much quieter than when he was with Castril alone earlier on. She briefly wondered if her spacing out in front of both of them just now had anything to do with his odd behaviour.

"We need to talk in our world's lingo." Adam said. "Our claims are not going to bail us out of this."

Adam's words were spoken with haste and was so soft it was barely audible to Ruby and especially Seth, who found himself leaning forward to make sure that Adam really had said something.

"Useless. We need that lake. And I sucked at the lingo talk. Please don't make me rake my brains just to communicate and sound cryptic." Ruby said.

"What's up, what's up?" Seth teased, a little too loud. He had learnt that much. Though the Elves were some distance off, all 3 noticed that some of them actually looked up towards the sky.

It was hard for vampires and shape-shifters to contain their laughter for the next few minutes.

"Are they always acting like that?" Legolas questioned Castril.

"Yes, my Prince. And very often too. I believe they of no threat to Mirkwood for they are far too harmless." Castril replied without second thoughts.

"But the reports about how they have fared against Orc attacks do not make them out to be as harmless as you claim, my friend." Legolas spoke more gently. He was worried that Castril's overtly friendliness to these unknown strangers may have clouded his sense of judgement.

"We do have our reservations about them. But King Thranduil did send his Heir and only son here. That could only mean that he sees the situation as one that is safe enough to do so." Counter argued.

Legolas took a deep breath and said "Or maybe he just thought it was a good enough tribulation for his protected Prince to go through."

Time and time again Legolas had to prove to his father that he was old enough to fend for himself and handle himself as a Prince should. Escort duty was definitely not one of the most honourable way to go about it but it was still another feat he had to see through.

The downfall of immortality was as such. Parents would never see their child as having grown up. Never. Especially King Thranduil, who was guilty of being an over-protective parent especially when his loving wife was no longer able to stay by his side.

Legolas had gone through a period of a sheltered childhood and teleported to one that included Orc raids, attacks and an introduction of the other Races whom he had only heard of in recalled stories or mere mentions.

King Thranduil was suddenly enlightened that his son had to see the world somehow. And the 'world' was limited to within Mirkwood, for now.

But not only was Legolas rudely introduced to Orcs, he was also introduced to the Dunedain from the Race of Man. They were a useful ally who had a similar enemy, the cursed Orcs. As much as King Thranduil would have hated to hear of it, but he found Strider a great friend.

A slain Elf would just be reborn in the West, but for Man, no one ever knew where their souls go to after passing over. Yet Legolas was impressed by the way the Rangers carried out their duties with the same vigour and determination similar to that of the Elves. They were not afraid to die from their cause.

"Why didn't you think of this earlier? I wouldn't have to make Adam repeat so many times about him and his … Lingo." Seth whined.

"Would you prefer if I spoke in French instead?" Adam asked in a sickeningly sweet voice. He even fluttered his eyelashes for effect.

Ruby typed out on her mobile phone: Shut up.

Seth immediately retorted "You didn't have to type that out. You could just speak it out, you know."

Ruby rolled her eyes. "Look, the battery's dying okay? Let's cut the crap." As she spoke, her fingers were flying over the keys, rapidly typing out her message.

Since they were unsure of just how far the Elves could actually hear them, they decided they would just type down whatever they had to say onto a mobile phone and then read it quietly. This way, no one except those who were able to look at the screen, could tell the message.

'They doubt us. Prince is sent to verify, if he's even really their Prince.' Ruby had typed.

Adam and Seth both nodded.

'The Elves are pretty cute. But we should really be home.'

The guys both rolled their eyes as Ruby chuckled.

The battery warning filled the screen again.

"You know what?" Adam said. He took the phone from Ruby and typed in the following words: 'Found lake. Jump. Farewell."

Just as Ruby and Seth finished reading, the mobile phone switched off. It's battery power already used to the limit.

"But we haven't found it yet." Ruby added.

"No. I think we just did." Seth said, pointing to the little body of water that looked like it formed because of a coincidental depression in the land. "It was caused by the rain last night."

Adam sighed "At least this explains why we were not able to find it earlier."

"So how are we going to go about it?" said Seth, pacing back and forth. "Whatever it is, we must do it soon before it evaporates and disappear again within the next few days."

"I think we should just jump in and give it a try." Ruby suggested.

However, Seth protested at the idea. "Easy for you to say. Look at how shallow it is! We'd be like a couple of kids splashing water. Where's my yellow boots, Ma?"

Ruby stood up, annoyed. "Seth, which do you think will happen first. Me killing you, or us finding our way back?"

Her raised voice attracted the attention of Dhother and Legolas.

They made their way to the group quickly. "Is anything the matter?" Dhother asked, concerned.

Legolas stood quietly beside him, observing all that was happening. An internal strife? What an uncommon sight! King Thranduil must have foreseen something unusual out of this. It was turning out to be a worthwhile trip after all.

Ruby chose the most opportune time to walk off. Seth was making her mad enough. She could not be bothered with the senior Elves question because it required a great amount of creativity to weave out a logical and nice story.

All Ruby heard as she walked off quickly was Adam's voice reassuring their hosts that it was just a small random argument that is over.


	7. Chapter 7: Confession?

Chapter 7: Confession?

Before Ruby knew where she was going, she was standing at the edge of the little water catchment. Her tough hiking boots was barely touching the edge of the water.

She let out a deep and unnecessary sigh.

Things may have been more complicating in Forks with them trying so hard to hide their identities. She cannot help but admit that over here it was much simpler – at first. But then there were obligations back home. They had a family waiting for them.

Carlisle and Esme must have been worried sick already. So were the others. Seth himself also had his own family who must be quite upset as well at the moment.

Though it was a planned holiday getaway, their families must have been alerted to their disappearance by the sudden loss of contact.

She dug into her pockets and took out her mobile phone. There was not even enough power left in it to switch it back on again. Still, if it was turned on, there was no reception even if you climbed to the top of the taller trees in the forest.

She placed the phone back into her pocket and sat down on the carpet grass.

It was very obvious that the large pool of water was recently formed. Certain parts of the grass was covered by it, though towards the centre portion, the plants looked more like algae or moss that was adapted to the extremely damp conditions.

She leaned forward to catch her own reflection in it.

_How on earth are we going to return? _She thought to herself.

It gradually became more interesting that the very still water reflected the cloudy skies above. Ruby was finding it strangely mesmerizing to be able to look down but yet be able to see the sky without a mirror.

Thus it was a rather rude shock for Ruby when the image was suddenly disturbed and distorted. Someone had thrown a pebble into the water.

Her natural reflex was to crouch down on the ground instead from her original sitting position, ready to pounce anytime at the intruder.

"I am sorry." Legolas began. "I did not know that it would frighten you so."

She responded with a feeble smile and then a complete silence, for she was too tired to humour him with anything else. She slowly sat back down again. She had had her fair share of arguments with Seth and knew that her temper was sometimes even pushing ever-optimistic Adam to the brink. This idea of a trip may have been initiated by her but she is beginning to regret every second of it.

But whatever it is, offending the Prince of the realm they were now in was certainly not a very good idea either.

Ruby sensed that the Prince approached her, despite him being a light-footer as all the other Elves were. With the huge mass of water in front of her, she could not help but wonder if they would actually be able to walk on water. This speculation did not last for Ruby realized that the Prince was actually intending to sit down beside her.

She knew she would dread every awkward moment of it for she had nothing to speak to an Elf. Any elf. Much less one whom she knows had certain suspicions about them already.

"Where is Castril?" She blurted out. It was probably the only common topic she and Legolas could even talk about - a person whom both knew well. Or so it seems.

Legolas shrugged his shoulders. That all too familiar smile of an Elf playing upon his lips. The difference is that the smile on Legolas actually looked more mischievous than irritating. Ruby thought that this must be attributed to both him and Castril being around the same age.

A comfortable silence passed between them.

"What brings you to Mirkwood?" He suddenly spoke. It was such a simple question that he could have been just asking a question like, how's your day?

Ruby knew a wrong answer would probably result in them being chased out of the Realm. No doubt it was something she and her companions wanted to do, and they were so close for the 'lake' they emerged from had already been found and was right in front of her, but winding up somewhere else in this world called Middle Earth was the last thing anyone of them wanted.

"We did not come on our own accord. We got lost along the way and accidentally stumbled upon your land." Ruby answered carefully. "Adam have explained it to your people before. Many times."

"Then where did you wish to go before you got lost?" Legolas asked again.

_Darned,_ Ruby thought. _Now this is something that Adam hadn't thought of. _Of all possible questions they had anticipated, this was one major issue they did not prepare a unanimous answer to.

"That is none of your business." Ruby retorted.

Adam had explained that the 'place' they wanted to get to had made them pass through the borders of Mirkwood by accident. But of course, with absolutely no knowledge of the place, there was no name for their imaginary destination.

Legolas could not hold back a shocked expression at her sudden defensiveness. She had looked so frail and lonely just awhile ago.

Ruby was inwardly delighted. That would put the Prince in his place. He ought to learn that not everyone will bow to him when they spoke with him. And not everyone will give him a reply to his every question.

But this Prince showed his surprise for all of three seconds before he resumed that sweet smile that annoyed Ruby to no end.

"You are right. It is not my business to ask. But as the Prince of the Realm, I do have a right to be concerned." Legolas replied, with all his Princely grace.

Ruby was almost tricked into feeling guilty. "My Prince, you have my assurance that whatever it is we wanted to do, or wherever it is we intended to go, it has nothing to do with Mirkwood."

To deliberately end the conversation, Ruby got up and decided to pretend that the most important thing to do right now was to take a walk.

She did not even need to turn her head to confirm that the Prince had gotten up. It was so loud and obvious.

_Maybe I should start running, _Ruby thought.

"Ruby." Legolas called out as he found himself struggling to keep up with her pace. "I apologise if my words sounded harsh."

She whirled around to face him. "Prince Legolas, if you would excuse me. I would appreciate some time alone."

He understood the underlying tone in her voice and decided to accede to her request. Bothering her any more would only lead to more trouble. He gestured for her to go ahead and she promptly did.

As he watched her walk away, his mind was immediately calculating which of the other two should he approach now?


	8. Chapter 8: Investigation

Chapter 8: Investigation

"I'm sorry." Seth said. He was looking elsewhere when he muttered the words – not daring to meet her eyes, but still Ruby knew it was one that was marked with sincerity. Seth apologizing was an uncommon occurrence but only because Seth hardly does things that was serious enough to warrant an apology.

Ruby stepped forward and ruffled his hair affectionately. Other than the fact that he reeks of a smell that resembled a wet dog, it was impossible to stay angry with Seth for long. All he had to do was to look sorry. Ruby wished she had that luck; Seth once described that Vampires only have two noticeable facial expressions: Ferocious (for when they were Hunting, and Emotionless (for all other situations).

When he pointed to Jasper as a fine example, Ruby had protested vehemently. Jasper was trying so hard to keep his instincts to hunt humans under control by hiding behind a cold mask. But even Seth himself had to admit that there were the occasional tender loving looks that Jasper so preciously reveal when he looked at Alice. It may be just a flash but it was there. They saw it for themselves sometimes.

Ruby mentally shook her head. No time to think about her other siblings. Seth was still waiting for her to say something to further seal the apology and put the bad episode behind them.

She took his hand, and interlocked her fingers with his. Both their hands were an amazing strong contrast in temperature. "Let's go find Adam and tell him the good news that I have decided not to murder you anymore." She joked.

They smiled at each other and set off at a slow and steady pace, enjoying each other's company. They had been friends for only awhile, though it had felt like decades.

When Carlisle and Esme welcomed Adam and Ruby into their 'vegetarian' family with open arms, the others had been abit skeptical. Emmett, Jasper and Rosalie had contemplated with the higher level of difficulty in which they had to keep their identities a secret. Alice and Bella were the two lovely darlings who helped them fit in perfectly into their new identities as students at Forks, as well as a cover identity as the distant relatives of Dr. Carlisle Cullen.

Edward, on the other hand, had freaked them out by his ability to read their minds like a book, though Edward later clarified it was more like a personal and private telephone call than reading words from pages. Not like knowing this fact spooked them any lesser.

But it was understandable that he wanted to read their minds and see what kind of persons they were.

Just as Ruby wanted to reconsider all the trouble they had to go through to be accepted by every single vampire of the Cullen family, Adam had told Ruby that if either of them was Edward, they would have done the same.

There was also Renesmee, the offspring of Edward and Bella, a young and blooming teenager who was actually the first one from the family that Adam and Ruby had chanced upon by accident. It was her who introduced them to the Cullens, showing them that they were not alone in their quest to not sacrifice human lives just to quench their hunger.

Ruby smiled at the memory. She was mildly disgusted by the fact that this young and gorgeous lady was actually dating a shape-shifter called Jacob who smelt like a dog. She loved dogs but the smell that radiated from Jacob was to the point of being almost unbearable.

But that was all history for now, she found herself not only being able to tolerate the smells of all the shape-shifters, but she was not shy to announce that one of them was her best friend.

The walk came to an abrupt stop when they saw Legolas and Adam engaged in conversation. The wind was not blowing in their favour. Adam should have smelt them approaching but he acted like he had not noticed it, continuing his conversation.

They stopped where they were and strained their ears to listen.

Ruby was peeved. Adam was talking in his polite and diplomatic voice. It was too polite and too diplomatic, which only meant one thing; the nosey Prince was trying to sieve information from him.

_Don't the Elves ever give up? _She thought. She was quite relieved that Legolas had went for Adam instead of Seth, for who knows what Seth might have blurted out by accident. Or did he, already?

She stared at Seth with a questioning look. He understood what she was thinking and shook his head while mouthing to her that Legolas did not approach him at all.

"Adam, I assume you are their leader?" Legolas asked.

"I am not. But if it is easier for you to see it that way my Lord, then yes, I am the oldest among them."

"Why then, would you not tell us where you intend to go after we find the lake you spoke of?"

"Prince Legolas, it is not… convenient for us to disclose to you."

"Who is it that you carry out orders for?" Legolas spoke in an authoritative manner. Prince or not, he was losing his patience.

Adam looked down, hoping that by looking slightly submissive he was able to avoid the confrontation. "I am sorry, my Lord, but I am not allowed to disclose it to you."

Seth was surprised by the deferential path Adam had chosen to get out of this situation. He smiled a little and wanted to nudge Ruby when he looked to his side and realized she was already some distance in front, moving towards her brother's rescue.

_Suspicions aside, Legolas had no right to speak to Adam like that! _

She reached them in no time and it was until when Adam kept blinking at her that she realized she was supposed to act breathless. Anyone who had walked so fast and covered such a distance was bound to be breathless.

This split second of realization was also what managed to calm her down considerably, or she would have screamed her head off at Legolas upon reaching them. NO ONE… talks to Adam like that!

"My Lady, why are you in such a hurry?" Legolas asked, shocked at her sudden intrusion.

A devious idea suddenly formed in her mind.

"My Prince, would you not walk with me for awhile?" she asked in a coy voice. She hoped that whatever innate skills of seduction that came with being a vampire will work well enough here after years of being out of practice.

There was no need for a 'vegetarian' vampire who hunts animals to learn how to manipulate humans like that, thus she was rather worried that these skills would be rusty.

His lips parted slightly in surprise but the blonde Prince nodded his head and offered his arm to her.

She gladly took it and as he led her away, she winked at Adam.

"So, My Lady, what brought on this change in attitude?" Legolas asked when they were some distance away from Adam and Seth.

Ruby almost let her confident front falter. Apparently she still had a long way to go if she wanted her exploitation skills to go anywhere.

"My Prince, I just wanted to make it up for being so rude to you just now. My apologies for I was in a foul mood then." She explained. "What was it that you wanted to speak to me about?"

She waited until he was about to state his question when she purposely tripped on some overgrown roots of a nearby tree. She made sure that she fell as hard as she could to make it look like a bad fall.

Legolas instinctively reached out. Either he is not a good saver, or Ruby was too engrossed in taking the fall, for although their hands managed to hold on to each other, she had already reached the ground anyway. For the effect, there was even a loud 'thud' sound as her knees hit the ground. "Are you alright?" Legolas asked, concerned.

Her plan to divert his attention worked. She ignored the glee building up inside her and nodded her head. "I should think so." She replied him, as he carefully pulled her up. It was a chance to stand close to him and so she did, conveniently putting her hands on his chest to look like she was trying to steady herself.

She looked up at him, realizing that this young Elf was taller than she is and her stare was reciprocated with electrifying blue eyes. She wondered how this Elf viewed her.

There is definitely an increased amount of difficulty with luring an Elf versus luring a human, for Elves themselves were not a bad looking Race. Their long lives may also have made them more immune to the different methods of seduction but Ruby was risking it seeing as how the Prince was still considered a youth and how splendidly she had managed to get along with Castril who was probably of the same age.

He stared back at her, unblinking. And then he broke into a smile. Ruby frowned in wonder, and Legolas explained "The trees. They are laughing at your carelessness."

Ruby turned her head to face another direction, knowing that any other maiden would have turned beetroot red by now. Since she was incapable of doing so, she turned away from his view to let him think that she is blushing.

She twirled her head back again quickly as she felt his hand on hers.

"Your hands are cold." He stated. It was not a question. "Are you unwell?"

She pulled her hand away and moved herself away from him. "I am fine, my Prince. Maybe I just need some rest."

"Yes. We should be getting back." He agreed, and gentlemanly extended his arm to her again.

She hesitated a little before taking his arm. At least Legolas was wearing long sleeves which prevented their skin from direct contact.

He walked at a noticeably slower pace. _Probably afraid that I would fall flat on my face the second time,_ she thought.

When they had arrived back, those who were in charge of hunting had already returned. The fire was already started as the kill was being prepared.

Adam and Ruby's eyes were still a light gold colour, the result of having had a fulfilling hunt the day before. It should keep them full enough at least for another week.

Ruby was also mildly surprised that Castril had been designated as one of the hunters, not knowing it was due to the Prince's orders. Legolas had been afraid that Castril's close friendship with Ruby might hinder his investigations and thus had hastily arranged this duty for his childhood friend instead.

Ruby thought she saw a fleeting look on Castril's face when he saw her and Legolas strolling back together to rejoin the others. Legolas excused himself and left her side. She decided to walk to Seth to see what he was up to. She could not help but notice that Castril was glancing over at her too many times from where he was speaking to the other Elves.

"Is there anything on my face?" she asked Seth who was close to her.

Seth looked at her for a total of two seconds before uttering a quick "Nope" before resuming his steadfast duty of hounding those who were preparing the dinner.


	9. Chapter 9: Cold

_A/N: I just want to acknowledge and thank you all for adding this story to your alert list (believe me I'm still learning how to navigate this whole damn thing). Chapter 9's dedicated to my loving grandpa who passed away last Wednesday because I'd actually been working on it into the wee hours of the night when he passed away in his room._

_I have to admit it affected me a lot because we've stayed together ever since I was born and he was always a permanent fixture in my life. I even thought of killing off a character in the story to help create an outlet for my grief… but no. I'm not going to do that. Partly because I couldn't bear to, haha. _

_So here's Chapter 9, with NO deaths. Enjoy~ _

Chapter 9: Cold

She was unnerved all through dinner. This was partly attributed by the fact that Legolas had decided to stay by her side throughout, causing her to force some food down her throat. Edward once described to Bella while she was still a human that eating human food for vampires was the equivalent of swallowing dirt to a human. That is an understatement. Depending on the food that is swallowed, it sometimes tastes more like you were trying to swallow sandpaper.

She had caught a look of pity on Adam's face and responded with a weak smile. Thankfully, Adam decided to save her by striking up a conversation about weapons with Legolas.

It worked. The Prince's attention was shifted and she immediately emptied the contents of her plate onto another that Seth was holding towards her with an outstretched arm.

Halfway through the conversation, Legolas had turned his head back to look at her, as if making sure that she had not moved from her spot. Ruby pretended to be chewing the last mouthful of her food as she put down her plate.

"That was quick!" Legolas commented. Ruby shrugged her shoulders and smiled. She winked at Adam when the Prince happened to look away again.

She put her plate aside and pretended to try to warm her hands against the fire.

"You know what? I think you should check out your buddy over there." Seth suddenly whispered to Ruby. She looked at where Seth had nodded his head towards and caught sight of a gloomy-looking Castril staring into the fire that was lit up in the middle of the camp. His plate is still full and sat on his lap, neglected.

With Legolas safely tucked away in what appears now to be a profound conversation with Adam regarding the evolution of weapons through the Ages, Ruby decided to make use of the opportune time to conveniently wander over to Castril, though she did momentarily wonder where on earth did Adam get all that knowledge from.

"Penny for your thoughts?" She said to Castril as she sat down next to him onto the soft grass. It startled him and he returned her with a puzzled expression. "I mean, what are you thinking about? You look so deep in thought." Ruby explained, forgetting that the occupants of Middle Earth and Planet Earth (as Seth puts it) spoke quite differently.

"Nothing significant." He smiled while replying. A few minutes of silence passed between them as they both stared at the fire. Both were actually waiting for the other to speak.

When they finally did, both actually spoke at the same time and paused.

"Ladies first." Castril laughed.

"I was just wondering, when are you going to start eating?" Ruby pointed at the plate that was still on his lap. "What about you?"

"I…" Castril hesitated. "It's nothing."

"Oh come on, Castril. Surely you know me well enough to know that you can tell me everything. Well, almost everything." Ruby encouraged.

Castril started poking and shifting the food around on his plate.

"What did you and the Prince speak about?" He asked in a meek voice. "I saw the two of you returning together when I just got back."

"Are you jealous?" Ruby asked in a half-incredulous voice. She was never in the limelight with Rosalie and Bella always around and could never imagine being desired by members of the opposite sex, however seductive and alluring a vampire can be.

"No. I just got worried. It seems that the Prince had been sent by the King himself to escort the three of you out of Mirkwood. You are a good friend of mine, after all, and I would not like the idea of you and your companions suddenly leaving." Castril anxiously clarified himself.

"Oh." Ruby muttered, feeling relieved with his comment. It acted as an reassurance to herself that nothing has changed.

"Castril, my dear Elf friend. If ever we have to leave Mirkwood immediately or at short notice, you would be the first person I would inform, and the person I'd miss the most." – And Ruby sincerely meant what she said.

Upon hearing her reply, Castril seemed to have transformed back into his old self again. The familiar smile appeared on his face, except it seem to be a much wider one than his usual. But the smile disappeared almost immediately when Ruby felt the presence of…

"Pardon me." Legolas said, as he made himself comfortable beside Ruby. "Am I intruding on the conversation?" He added, when he noticed Castril's expression.

"Certainly not, my Prince." Castril answered him respectfully. Friendships aside, Legolas was still a Prince and had to be accorded with the necessary formalities especially in the presence of another guest.

Ruby could feel the awkward silence and tension between the two Elves. It was her own undoing but she did wish she could get out of the situation right now. She looked across the bonfire but Seth and Adam were both preoccupied with their own conversations to notice her dilemma.

"I need some water." She said, and proceeded to get up. She was half afraid that Legolas might order Castril to get it for her, so she hurriedly walked away to get to the bubbling stream.

This feeling of guilt was probably what made her stay firm in her belief in feeding on animals instead of humans for their diet. And the familiar feeling was surfacing because she felt that she was driving a wedge between what earlier appeared to be two really close childhood friends when all she wanted was to shift Legolas' focus away.

Who would believe them if they said they were from, well, Planet Earth? Apparently the Elves had enough on their hands with Orcs. What would they do with the 3 of them if they did not believe their story that they had accidentally trespassed while hunting?

It would have been a lot of truth for them to absorb. Firstly, it was about unexpected visitors from another world. Secondly, the existence of blood suckers in addition to the shape-shifter they are already aware of. Thirdly, however invincible they may seem to be, they are absolutely not interested in destroying anything to do with Mirkwood, except of course, a few animals here and there when they needed to feed.

_Killed? Jailed? Tortured?_ Ruby thought. She smiled perversely at the thought. Okay, so maybe a vampire could be killed. But jailed or tortured? If vulnerable Seth had not been with her and Adam for this trip, they would have fought their way out if the Elves had even tried to stall them.

She was suddenly aware of light foot steps behind her. Castril had not followed. But Legolas did. She could smell him from way off; the distinctive scent that reminded her of freshly cut grass.

It was good that she was successful to some extent as a temptress. But Ruby could not help but feel abit sick at the thought that she was making use of him. She would never have intended for this if she could help it. But now that they were too close to figuring a way out to go back, she could not allow anything else to go wrong.

And now, another situation that made her feel lousy is being alone with Legolas. No doubt he was good looking, a fine gentleman and being the youngest Cullen vampire she would have swooned over him like he was some Hollywood idol. But given her inexperience in matters of the heart, she would rather die than be caught in a situation where she is at a loss of what to do. It was not like school tests or an exam where you could just study and then breeze through it.

She slowed down her pace and bent down, gingerly touching her ankle while frowning slightly. It worked. Legolas seemed to have a soft spot for the injured. He was especially tender and concerned to the soldiers who were hurt from the earlier Orc encounter but were already recovering speedily. She had noticed it when he first arrived at the camp and was quite surprised.

He reached her side quickly and bent down on one knee to take a closer look at her ankle.

"Does it hurt?" He asked. His eyes studying her ankle that was hidden under the boot. Ruby thanked the geniuses at Timberland for designing, as well as her own smart choice of purchasing the thick pair of hiking boots she was wearing. Legolas would not be able to see whether it was swollen or not under all that leather.

"I'm fine." Ruby answered, but she did not move her hands from her ankle.

"Is it because you tripped earlier? Or is this an old wound? Should I call for the Healer?" He asked, looking directly at her but her eyes flickered away almost immediately after seeing the worry in his eyes.

_This is great. After discovering that this Elf may have the hots for you, you go ahead and forget how to lie_ Ruby chided herself.

"There is no need to worry, my Lord. I am quite careless and suffer from these injuries often." Ruby explained, and straightened her back to continue the walk to the stream.

Legolas held her arm as she stiffly moved forward, finding it difficult to shake the thought that he was in contact with her. Ruby pondered whether they would reach the stream first or if Legolas was going to see through her fake limp first.

As she carefully got on her knees and bent forward to cup the water to drink, she could still feel his eyes on her. She naturally returned the look.

"My Lady, you are not well." He remarked.

Her eyes widened in question.

Legolas went on to explain "You are pale. Your hands and arms are both cold. I have seen you eat and you do so as if you are obligated to. "

He lowered himself until his face was uncomfortably close. One of his hand reached up and caressed her cheek. "Even your face is cold, my Lady." He said, softly.

She could only stare back weakly, knowing that he was expecting some sort of reply to his observations.

The Cullens keep to themselves a lot at Forks. It was not because they were arrogant or think themselves as better than human, although they do better in many physical aspects.

Emotional attachment to humans do not do good for immortals, since they do not remain alive long enough, and are too fragile to roughhouse with. Moreover, close physical proximity would have set off them off shooting questions the way Legolas had. It would blow their cover immediately and the Volturi would descent upon them at first chance, according to Bella.

Ruby liked to think the Volturi as some sort of royal family that all vampires in the world had to obey to. A disciplinary body that ensures that Vampires remained as a fictional figure in... Well… Planet Earth.

But according to Bella, the Volturi had a bad enough encounter with the Cullens already. It had something to do with the Volturi feeling threatened because other than them, the Cullens would have been the next biggest vampire coven, though Ruby was very sure it had to do with more than just that. Since Bella was hesitant to reveal more, she left it at that.

Legolas knew she was holding back. He could not explain the strange attraction he felt for her after she intercepted his conversation with Adam, but still, curiousity was winning. He probed on further.

"We have worked alongside the Dunedain for centuries. Elves may not like them much but I know them well enough to tell you are not one."

Ruby felt her technically dead heart take a plunge.

"Legolas…" She started, ignoring all etiquettes now. "I swear from the bottom of my heart that whatever it is that we are, we do not pose as a danger to any of your kind."

Despite the confrontational conversation, Legolas could not help but smile. It was amusing, especially to a Prince, to hear a lady swearing.

"And I thought you should be the one who feels afraid. But now you're making me scared." Ruby said, when she saw Legolas smiling back at her.

"Maybe that's why my father sent me." He said. "The King would have slain you had he been the one who is here, for I am more receptive to explanations."

Ruby felt strangely relieved at his statement. "I would have thought that he sent you because a King should not need to bother himself with checking the identities of intruders."

She began. "Would you then be still as receptive to the truthful yet ridiculous explanation? "

He continued his smile as if she had not spoken.

Ruby took it as a signal for her to continue.

She took a deep breath to continue her story and in the process took in a deep breath of his scent. It made her realize that she and Legolas were still in the weird kneeling position by the stream. A position that was too close for comfort. As a Prince, did he not notice that he was too close to a lady he barely knew?

She shifted herself to put additional distance between them.

"We do not know how we got here. We just appeared out of nowhere. I can't proof it to you but all I can say is that we obviously look different." She motioned to her attire to stress her point.

Legolas nodded in agreement.

She continued "It had something to do with the lake. We were actually having fun in the water. Actually, it was more like underwater. And when we got out, we were here."

"My Lady, you mean to say you are not from Middle Earth?" He concluded.

"Yes!" She shouted out exuberantly, glad that he understood where she was coming from.

"I mean, look! Nothing about us looks like we are from Middle Earth, don't you agree? The way we talk! The attire we wear!" She almost added in about the extra sharp senses they possess but decided to leave it out. It was an extra something that Legolas did not need to know about.

"That makes sense now." Legolas said, thoughtfully. "So what are you? I do know Seth is a shape-shifter. We have heard of them before in ancient stories and it is an honour to witness one in battle with the Orcs, though I must add that my soldiers were pleasantly surprised. So was my father when he heard the news. But what are you? Adam and you are certainly no shape-shifter."

Her mind went into frenzy although she appeared calm on the exterior. It hit like a flash of lightning when she recalled the alternative name given by the ancestors of the Quileute tribes to describe vampires. Seth had mentioned the stories to her one too many times.

"In our world, they call us the Cold Ones." She said, finally able to look at him directly in the eye as she said it, because technically she was not lying.


	10. Chapter 10: Appreciation

Chapter 10: Appreciation

Legolas had accepted that explanation and left it at that. Ruby had wisely chosen to retain selective information from him and it was mainly about their diet, senses and immortality.

Leaving Legolas with his thoughts, she excused herself and made her way back to the camp. Castril suddenly appeared from behind a tree as if he had already been waiting for some time.

"My Lady, would you grace me with your company?" He asked. Ruby was comfortable in his presence, but yet she felt that she had had enough share of inquisitiveness to last her for the next few decades. She smiled back at him although her mind was thinking of an excuse to reject him kindly.

But she did not have to think for long for a shout pierced through the silent trees, loud and clear.

"Orcs!" The voice shouted. It was unmistakably Dhother's deep voice. The sound of steel being undrawn from their scabbards soon followed. It only meant that the Orcs had managed to come too close to the campsite already that bows and arrows were no longer possible.

She was not afraid for Adam's safety. Even a bear would not be able to take down Adam, much less an Orc. Though one was armed and the other just an animal, both fought with the same approach: brute force.

It was Seth that she was worried about, for the occasional wrestling matches between Seth and the vampires were not considered cumulative experience when in the face of battle.

Castril found himself alone as Ruby rushed off at a deadly speed. He quickly recovered from his shock and ran quickly towards the direction that Dhother had shouted from.

Seth was safe but not exactly contented with the current situation. He was surrounded in a protective circle by the Prince's company; elves that had accompanied Legolas to join the existing party led by Dhother.

It was easy to differentiate both parties because the Prince's convoy was dressed in a smart silver tunic. Dhother's subordinates were dressed in a deep forest green and brown that resembled Robin Hood's Merry Men.

And right now, the silver band was protecting Seth. It was logical. They must have heard of how Seth had gotten injured before in the previous Orc attack. Moreover, as Legolas and Castril had implied many times in their conversations, Ruby knew they treated the 3 of them as guests of the realm, albeit with doubt and suspicion included into the mix.

Seth was not very glad about it. Having already transformed into his wolf form when he noticed the scent of Orcs, he found himself encircled into the protective loop and unable to get out and teach the Orcs a lesson. He was snarling and pacing impatiently back and forth as the Elves would not budge from the protective ring.

It was comical to see the Silver Elves hesitate. They do not know whether to pay attention to the Orcs or to turn back and make sure that Seth does not try anything funny behind their backs.

Ruby, quietly relieved, joined Dhother, Adam and Legolas who were standing in a line. There was no need for them to get involved in the fight, yet.

The 'Merry Men' had already begun defending their place. There were not as many Orcs this time and there were more soldiers to hold their positions. Or so they thought.

Very soon, it was obvious that Orcs continued flooding in, yet the speed to bring them down stayed the same. Dhother and Legolas had their swords and knives drawn. Ruby looked to her brother for any signs to attack but saw him growling instead.

She wished Adam would not be so loud about it or the Elves would start noticing his behaviour. But even if they did, they were too engrossed in the battle to notice.

Adam moved before Ruby could say anything to him. He moved so quickly that he was almost a blur.

Many days ago, they already had an agreement. Future orc attacks would mean they would have to kill them via other means instead of plainly tearing them apart. They did not want to frighten the Elves so.

And the only way to go about it was to break their necks. It does not require brute strength nor weapons, for the vampires were unaccustomed to having to hold anything. And in the event there was blood shed on the battle ground, they were to explain that Seth was the one who took that Orc down.

The Prince's party was stunned when they saw Legolas. Their own Prince had joined the fight. They were unsure if they should do so themselves or continue protecting the unwilling Seth.

Seth saw his chance; a small gap among some of the undecided Elves. He dashed through and placed himself near to Adam and Ruby who were moving at breakneck speeds (a/n: pun unintended) bringing Orcs to the ground after snapping their thick and grotesque necks.

Seeing how even their charge had joined the battle, the Elves disbanded and spread themselves to wherever the Orcs were, confident that Seth was competent enough to protect himself at least for now.

The charging Orcs were slowing down to a halt. These creatures without a leader to guide them rarely stay in large numbers, though a small party would be damaging enough to farming villages that are often undefended and inexperienced with weaponry.

The Elves managed to bring down the majority and attention slowly turned to the last few surviving ones. It was then that they realized Adam and Ruby.

They fought like they were in a trance. It was as if they were possessed by another animal with strong bloodlust. For awhile, Castril was even afraid when he caught sight of Ruby's eyes. It was like he did not know her at all. He stood, sword in hand, not knowing if he should even step forward to offer his help.

It was also hard not to notice how strong Adam and Ruby's arms were, for although they were just twisting the necks of the Orcs they attacked, it was quick and fast, showing them just how strong the two actually were, for everyone knows that an Orc's neck was not so easy to break.

They did it with such vigour that had it not been an Orc, the creature may have already been decapitated easily enough.

The last Orc fell to the ground near Adam's feet before Ruby could even get to him.

Seth, having transformed back to his human form was panting as he leaned against a nearby tree, tired out from the action. Adam and Ruby, upon sensing Seth's heavy breathing, started doing the same to fit in with the others.

They became suddenly aware that the Elves, other than their breathlessness, were strangely silent. No shouting orders from Legolas or Dhother to clear the Orc bodies and burn them. No sounds either, from those attending to their injured comrades.

Instinctively, all 3 turned their heads and looked at their hosts.

The staring got to the point of being uncomfortable.

"Yes?" Adam asked no one in particular.

"Pardon our rudeness. We… are just… impressed. We have not witnessed such graceful fighting before against such uncouth beings like the Orcs. Moreover, both of you were unarmed!" Dhother said, breaking the silence.

"Exactly, Commander. What were you thinking to leave our guests unequipped for battle!" Legolas reprimanded his General loud enough for all the Elves to hear.

Dhother bowed to the Prince and to them apologetically.

"Prince Legolas, please do not blame Dhother. We are unarmed by choice, and not because Dhother did not think of it." Ruby quickly jumped to Dhother's defense because she felt that he should not be wronged.

Legolas winced when he heard how Ruby had addressed him. It was too formal and he disliked it much more than he thought he would have.

_Aren't we already friends? _He thought. Earlier on when Ruby had called him by name during their conversation, he had thought that they had made great progress as more than just mere acquaintances. He was even more delighted when she confessed about how she and her 2 companions had trespassed into Middle Earth unintentionally.

To him, the story was far-fetched. But anything was possible in Middle Earth. Praise the Valar. Maybe the Valar had intended for this for they badly needed allies against the Orc raids happening around the kingdom.

"It may not be safe to linger around here. This particular group of Orcs is exceptionally large. We must…" but before Dhother could continue, an Orc fell on him, dead.

The trees protected the party well out of view from enemies. They even provided the Elves with vital information regarding enemy whereabouts. But as with the Ents, the Trees were also slow and took a long time to communicate to each other, or with the Elves. A simple word may even take 10 minutes or more to verbalize.

Thus, the trees work both ways; to the benefit of the Elves, and to the benefit of the Orcs.

Fortunately for him, Adam had sensed a figure creeping behind the trees close to Dhother and had rushed to his side and felled the Orc before the despicable brute could harm the Commander.

King Thranduil finished the letter from his son, who was not the only one impressed by the visitors.

He placed the letter down on the study table alongside another from Dhother that he had finished reading earlier on.

Sivia continued awaiting King Thranduil's permission expectantly. The King motioned for his subject to read the letters.

"They saved Dhother's life?" Sivia said in an incredulous voice, not even pausing to look up at the King as he made his statement.

"Do you still doubt them?" The King asked with a twinkle in his eye.

"My Lord, this alone is not enough to give them complete trust!"

"We have lived long enough to be able to tell one's character. Would you not give our eyes the chance to see for ourselves what do we have that landed on our doorstep?" Thranduil asked.

Sivia pondered the risks involved. They had nothing to lose. There were countless guards within the palace, not to mention the team of bodyguards that were assigned to Thranduil. At least he would be safe especially if he mobilized all of them when the guests arrive.

Moreover, Legolas had nothing but praises for the Cold Ones and their shape-shifter friend. He would have seen it coming that his father would honour them with a banquet for saving the life of the King's (favourite) Commander. Knowing him since he was a child, Sivia was also sure that Legolas would not have placed Thranduil's life on the line if it had been even remotely dangerous.

And from the contents of his letter, Dhother himself was not an exception. He was more than impressed. He was indebted. It was obvious from the way he complimented his benefactors, and praises from Dhother were far and few between and were usually reserved for outstanding soldiers who had proven their mettle.

"As you wish, my King." Sivia bowed deeply. Thranduil was pleased and unrolled a parchment to begin his letter.

Ianin returned to the campsite with a message from the King. Legolas had eagerly waited for his arrival, already knowing what was in store for them.

Meanwhile, Adam, Ruby continuously cared for the injured for they felt obligated to. Moreover, without the need to sleep, they found themselves being able to help the Healer more than the other Elves who needed as much as rest as a typical human being.

Thankfully, none of the Elves were too seriously injured. Even Castril's leg wound only required bandaging though Ruby had foolishly offered to stitch up the wound, much to the Healer's horror since the wound was just a superficial one.

Adam was puzzled as he could sense Castril's emotions. It seemed like the Elf had very much wanted his leg to be stitched up by Ruby even though it was not necessary. He sensed the weird wave of disappointment wash over Castril when the Healer deemed the stitching unnecessary and Ruby moved off to attend to the next injured Elf.

Despite the Healer himself frequently trying to shoo them away to get some rest, Adam and Ruby tended to the injured tirelessly. Resting, or pretending to rest, only made them more irritable. They had to lie down and pretend to sleep when they could have been helping out.

They finally understood why Carlisle had dedicated himself to the medical profession. Minus the issue they have with human blood, with their speed and accuracy, they could do so much, so quickly, in a short span of time.

On the other hand, Seth had been going off on his own very often. Adam could attend to the patients because he could sense their emotions. Ruby is a female to begin with and is naturally good with such stuff.

So he had offered his services of being in charge of hunting for food. To him, hunting was one of the easiest task in the world. With him doing the hunting, he could also secretly sneak back animal blood for Adam and Ruby before the catch is passed on to the cooks, so he felt it was a win-win situation.

Ruby stood up after her nimble fingers secured a fresh bandage onto the wound of an Elf. She had long noticed, from the corner of her eye how Legolas and Dhother were speaking to Adam at a quiet corner that was out of hearing range.

Adam hardly spoke but was nodding his head ever so often.

Sensing her eyes on him, Adam glanced at her way to acknowledge her questioning stare. At least Adam's relaxed posture assured her that everything was okay. Or maybe not.


	11. Chapter 11: Messenger

_A/N: Hi all. Thank you for even reading this fic. Seriously. I mean… I uploaded this with the intention that I would be really glad enough if one or two readers would even read faithfully chapter by chapter. To answer Selene's question, the story is actually set before the War of the Ring, since in Chap 1, Gollum had only just escaped. But knowing that LOTR actually took place over many, many years, I'm assuming that there is a large amount of time that lapsed between Gollum's escape and when the Council of the Ring was finally held. _

Chapter 11: Messenger

"What?" Ruby almost screeched.

"Ruby, my dear sister, I know you are young but you have got to learn to keep your emotions under control." Adam gently reprimanded as an elder brother would.

Ruby rebutted "I am doing my best, but this is ridiculous! We should be on our way back! We have found the water! The injured ones are already healing! We are no longer obligated! What will Esme think? What will Carlisle say? And Seth! His family is waiting for his return!"

Realising that she was rattling off, she faced another direction and took a deep breath to calm herself down.

"Adam…" She said softly, without bothering to turn her head to look at him. "I am tired. I am tired of being a manipulative witch to keep our identities under wraps, to not be able to hunt as and when we want, to always have to be so careful so that we will not give ourselves away."

"It is so emotionally draining." Ruby's voice almost cracked as she finished.

Seth suddenly hooked Ruby's neck from behind her in a friendly chokehold. "Now, now… Little Ruby's crying! What a sight!" He gently teased her.

"Knock it off, Seth. Vampires do not cry." Ruby brushed off his comment, though she kept a hand on one of his arms around her neck, feeling rather comforted by the warmth radiating from it.

Adam smiled as he messed up Ruby's hair, an sign of affection that he did a little too often, much to her annoyance.

"But I have a plan. And I don't know if the both of you will agree to it." Adam stepped nearer to them, his face being serious now.

So the plan was decided and agreed unanimously among the 3. As a precautionary measure, Seth would return to 'Planet Earth' first. There were three main rationales for this decision.

The first was to ensure that it was indeed possible to go back to their world. The second was so that everyone else back in Forks would be assured that Adam and Ruby were safe and sound. And thirdly, the wonderful discovery of a pathway to another world called Middle Earth.

Seth, of course, would be free to travel back and forth between the two worlds after he had done his part of declaring to the rest of their families that they are safe.

Ruby could not help but admit she was quite skeptical about sharing the knowledge of the pathway with the rest. After all, any secret would be harder to keep if everyone knows about it. What if it is accidentally told to a Human? How would humans in general react to the existence of Elves? And how would they take to the news that it was Vampires who first chanced upon the existence of the Elves?

She shook her head, knowing that she was thinking too much. Seth was shocked by this sudden action. "What?" Seth asked, surprised.

"Nothing, I think some of your ticks crawled onto me." Ruby playfully remarked, earning herself a disgusted stare from Seth.

Adam put his arm around Seth like a big brother would. "You know, we are not even sure if this method is going to work. I mean, we'd have a lot of explaining to do when you disappear like that."

"You think if I ran fast enough, I'd be able to make it back in time for the King's banquet?" Seth asked hopefully.

"No!" Ruby and Adam shouted in unison.

"Fine!" Seth sulked. "No one cooks better than Mum anyway! Although Esme is coming close!"

He regretted blurting out Esme's name when he noticed that his two friends fell silent after that. At least he would be going home to see his family. Adam and Ruby had never left the Cullens ever since joining the family a year ago and Esme was the closest they had to a mother ever since their transformation. They must be missing her badly.

"Adam?" Seth called out. "Um… Let's go find Legolas to tell him that I won't be able to attend."

Ruby had managed to convince to Legolas that the collection of water was very important. It worked like a portal (and Ruby had a hard time trying to get this idea across to Legolas). Occasionally, Ruby creatively injected some danger and malicious stories about Planet Earth so that Legolas would not even think of trying to trespass to their world.

The chaos that would ensue if any of the Elves attempted to cross over would be disastrous.

Adam had also managed to move some huge rocks on the pretense that it was easier for them to defend themselves should the Orcs attack them again. The Elves helped out in the move as some of the rocks were huge. And when they were not looking, Adam moved some of the rocks himself to speed things up.

These rocks actually worked as markers for them to identify where the body of water accumulated at, just in case there is a prolonged period of dry weather.

_Trust Adam to think of this brilliant idea, _Ruby thought. _And trust him to make me stay back with him so that there at least one person here to save his arse. _

Ruby knew that Adam's explanation that it would be rude to reject the King's invitation was a façade. He was more interested to be able to witness an Elf's city for himself more than anything, especially since he would be one of those that are honoured at the banquet that the King invited them to.

Dhother was apparently more important than she thought. A commander that falls in battle usually would be rewarded with an honourable funeral. A commander saved in battle would usually be dealt with for his negligence. But for this case, the King is actually crediting those who had saved Dhother's life instead of punishing the Commander for his carelessness.

Seth gathered the last of his stuff. He patted the head of the horse that had served him well so far. The animal had long gotten use to Seth's scent and it neighed in reply as if knowing that Seth would not be returning for a long time, or ever.

He walked to the only pitched tent in the camp where Legolas would be. Even Dhother himself had to sleep in the open with the rest.

The two vampires were already there. The Prince was brandishing some weapons while Adam marveled at the Prince's discipline as Legolas explained how he personally cleans and maintains them.

Ruby was sitting dejectedly in the corner, obviously not looking forward to Seth's departure. She looked up at him as she noticed him entering. Her face switched back to its emotionless state.

Legolas had earlier on insisted that Seth attend the banquet, but relented when he realized that Seth was going to be a messenger of sort; to tell their families that Adam and Ruby were safe and sound.

He had remembered how they looked like when they fought the Orcs and personally, Legolas did not think that it was possible for Adam and Ruby to be harmed in any way.

But Legolas understood the concern that parents would always have towards their children, having experienced it himself countless times from King Thranduil. He could recall how when he was an Elfling Thranduil had embarrassed him considerably in front of the others by fussing over him needlessly.

Therefore, Adam and Ruby could be the most competent warriors in Middle Earth but their family would always be worried for their safety. Thus, he granted Seth's absence from the banquet.

"I see that you are ready to set off." Legolas commented when he noticed Seth.

Seth smiled back at him in reply.

"Be off with you then." Legolas said, as he stepped forward and grasped Seth's arms in a warm handshake. Ruby could not help but admire Legolas consistent facial expression. In the short time that they were together, she was certain that Legolas had never come into physical contact with Seth at all and should not have expected Seth's body heat.

"But I shall hope to see you again soon, my friend."

All 3 sensed that there was an underlying message in the Prince's sentence.

Adam bowed and said to Legolas "My Prince, allow us to send Seth off. It will be for just a short distance."

Legolas nodded in approval.

They turned to leave

"Oh yes, before I forgot. Please keep this. It will do well to lessen any possible misunderstandings by the other patrolling Elves." Legolas passed Seth a brooch. It was a small silver brooch that is obviously handcrafted with a leaf and a feather over it. It was remarkably detailed for such a small object.

Seth thanked the Prince and they left the tent.

"What is that bag you're holding on to?" Adam asked pointing to a sack that Seth slung over his shoulder.

"Just some leftover food from yesterday's dinner. The cooks gave it to me as a farewell gift." Seth replied.

"I hope they gave it to you out of their own accord. You seem to be hounding them all the time I'm surprised that they gave you anything at all!" Ruby stated.

"Oh well, I guess they're just happy that I'd be gone and they'd have lesser animals to hunt and lesser food to cook." Seth joked.

"Right, you've just reminded me. With you gone, we are going to have to eat cooked food." If it be possible, Adam's face turned a shade lighter as he voiced his realization.

"Well, someone should have thought of this when he accepted the invitation to the banquet." Ruby said.

They ran at the speed they were accustomed to when they were hunting. There was no time to waste. It was more out of curiousity because they do not know if the method to return would be the same as the way they arrived.

It was quite a distance since Legolas and Dhother had moved the entire encampment away in case the Orcs returned. But thankfully their speed allowed them to reach the place within a few minutes.

"This is it. The rocks." Adam pointed out. Even if the rocks had not been there, the location was still fresh in the minds of all of them. They would be able to recognize it anyway, but Adam's precaution was still very much appreciated. Better to be safe than sorry.

Seth wrapped two surprised vampires in a fierce hug. "Okay guys, I don't know how long it will be before I see the both of you again." He said to them.

"Oh, don't you get us started on all that mushy conversations." Ruby half-heartedly tried to push Seth away but he only responded to her statement with a chuckle.

"Take care, Seth. We'd come back once we've had enough fun here." Adam said, while giving a friendly punch to Seth's shoulder.

"Alright. And promise you two won't forget about all of us that I find myself having to come back here and fetch you two!."

"Promise!" Adam and Ruby chorused in unison.

Seth smiled at his two buddies and turned around muttering "I hate getting wet."

He treaded into the water until he was nearing the middle of the pool. It was much deeper than it looked. By the time Seth had took a few steps in, the water had submerged up till his knees already.

"How am I supposed to do this again?" Seth asked before he continued his way in.

"Wade out to the middle and submerge yourself underwater for as long as you can." Adam called out to him in reply.

"The sack of food included! Stop trying to hold them above the water." Ruby could not help but laugh as she shouted to Seth.

Now it was Seth's turn to roll his eyes. "Here goes!" he exclaimed and disappeared under water.

For awhile, Adam and Ruby was dazed. The amount of dirt that was kicked up as Seth waded into the water seemed to have swallowed him completely. When the floating particles finally settled back onto the bottom of the pool, Seth was gone.

"Wow." Adam remarked.

"Wow." Ruby echoed him.

They stood around for a little while longer. Satisfied that their plan had apparently worked, they turned around to make their way back to the camp.

"You know, Seth would so kill us if he didn't end up back at Planet Earth. I mean, we came to Middle Earth through the portal. What makes you so sure that the portal wouldn't send him off to another world?" Ruby asked Adam. She was worried and quite disturbed by what they witnessed back there.

"Portals usually work two-way, Ruby. It wouldn't serve any purpose if they are always bringing you to different worlds." Adam consoled her even though he was no longer that sure of it himself.

As they were almost about to dash off, they heard Seth's voice shouting "I'm backkkkkk!"

They both turned around to see a drenched Seth wading towards them with his arms wide open, intending to draw the both of them into his hug.

"Oh nooo.. Don't you touch me!" Ruby snarled.

Adam had also retreated enough steps to put additional distance between him and Seth.

"What are you doing back here again?" Adam questioned.

"Nah, I just wanted to let you guys know that the path works and that I didn't disappear to another ~whole new world." Seth stated, ending the sentence with a song from Walt Disney's Aladdin.

Ruby was glad that Seth came back to tell them the great news, though she could not help but tease him "Seth, maybe you should just go back to Planet Earth and stay there. I have a feeling the journey to and fro is making you go a little nutty."

Erurost returned to Legolas, trying very hard to speak and catch his breath at the same time. Judging by his early return, Legolas could already foresee the bad news that Erurost was going to tell him. Castril did briefly mentioned to Legolas of how Ruby had just dashed off like that. It was like she disappeared in the blink of an eye.

So, he was not very surprised that Erurost, one of the best scout Mirkwood, was not able to keep up with them.

They must be very, very fast.

It was already dark when they returned to the camp.

Since Adam and Ruby were away, they had decided to make use of the opportunity alone to hunt again; to max out their appetite so that they could stave off hunger for a longer period, not wanting to risk putting themselves in such desperate and dire situation that they had to resort to hunting farm animals kept by the Elves within the city.

It would raise suspicions.

They split up once they returned to the camp, trying to make their absence less noticeable by helping out with whatever chores.

Ruby was feeding some fallen branches to the fire when an Elf approached her.

"My Lady, Prince Legolas requests for your audience." The polite Elf bowed as he spoke. If anything, Ruby thought he looked a little nervous and even frightened of her. Did she do anything to inadvertently give that impression?

"I will be there." She replied to him, flashing him a rare smile. The Elf almost stumbled as he retreated a few steps before turning away. She could see he was trying very hard not to break into a run.

She felt the dilemma she was in. Adam often reminded her not to be so emotional and dramatic or others would be able to read her like an open book. Yet sometimes she hated the way others were acting around her like she was a cannibal who might devour the unexpected victim for no reason.

What she was not aware of was that she was attractive to them. Not drop dead gorgeous as Bella or especially Rosalie, but nevertheless, still charming in her own way. The male Elves had kept a distance from her partly because she was a Lady and it would be rude to keep talking to her (especially one whom their Prince had showed visible interest in). But the other reason was that they felt dwarfed in her presence because they were captivated by her.

All except Castril, who clearly ignored the customary rules. He sensed the opportunity as to how the other Elves ignored her, and jumped at whatever chance he had to talk to Ruby whenever he could. A young and rash Elf he was, like a child who had taken a liking to a toy and would not give up.

But the unexpected appearance of Legolas did make him hesitate. Legolas was a good friend. And a Prince too. His Prince. And on top of that, he is a childhood friend who had taken the rap for their foolish exploits one too many times since Legolas was privileged in bearing the lighter punishments.

"It does not make sense for both of us to be punished. Better one than both." Legolas would wave him off with this statement whenever Castril apologized profusely to him after each punishment.

Since then, Castril had always been grateful to the Prince. It was instilled in him since he was young that he would aid the Prince whenever he could. But then Ruby came into the picture and messed his priorities up.

Surely the Lady was the one to make this ultimate decision between them if it boils down to it. Meanwhile it was going to be a fair fight for her heart.

He spotted Arrgeth speaking to Ruby by the fire. He was not able to hear the conversation from where he was but he could not miss the small curve of her lips in response to whatever Arrgeth said to her.

She was so beautiful, but in a cold way. But given the awkward way she had smiled, it was obvious she did not smile much at all. He did, however, recall the warmer and natural smiles she had shown when she was playfully bantering with Seth and Adam.

Arrgeth must have been passing a message from someone else. He did not have to rack his brains to think who it was when he saw the way Ruby was headed to.

Legolas.

It was going to be a tough fight.


	12. Chapter 12: Eve

Chapter 12: Eve

The more Ruby got to know Legolas better, the more guilty she felt for not being hundred percent honest with him. But then again, how could she?

He was a friendly and humble Prince, well-loved and respected by the other Elves, even the senior ones like Dhother. She was sure he had earned their respect more than just by being polite.

And more recently, Ruby found out that he was one that loved to talk. And talk he did, going on and on about his father, King Thranduil, the city of Mirkwood, that oddly enough does not have a proper name.

Thankfully, Legolas had fantastic storytelling skills. He was able to engage most of Ruby's attention and so she did not find herself even having to pretend that she was listening because she was really paying attention.

Orcs, apparently, were not the only threat Mirkwood often faces. It included Spiders. Luckily, the presence of these creepy crawlies were very much reduced when the Orc raids became more rampant. Ruby did not like the idea of having to battle huge spiders that had legs longer than the height of the average Man.

Without disclosing to Legolas, she secretly preferred battling more Orcs than spiders though she was sure the Elves preferred the latter.

Poor Castril found himself being more and more ignored. Legolas summoned for Ruby every time they stopped for breaks. And when they were on their journey back to the city, he rode beside her horse.

Adam on the other hand was getting more and more experienced with blades. The other Elves had apparently thought it would be wiser for him to learn a few neat tricks. Within days, he was able to wield a sword with expert grace and style, a skill he hoped would help him become popular with the ladies. He mentally flinched when an image of Tanya flashed through his mind.

The pain of rejection was still raw for him, though Ruby insisted to him that it was not, since he had not even confessed to Tanya yet. But Adam was certain that Tanya would have rejected him, for he could not sense her emotions well at all, being too nervous whenever she is around. Moreover, there was quite a huge age gap between them, not because Tanya was too old, but because Adam had not been an immortal long enough.

Edward refused to use his mind-reading powers to help out the situation, claiming that it was an intrusion of privacy and would defeat the purpose. The worst part was that Jasper, Emmett and Carlisle all agreed with Edward's point of view. Easy for them to say; they are all already attached to the love of their life.

After another excruciating round of dinner for Adam and Ruby, Dhother gathered everyone round as the plates were being collected and passed back to the designated cooks to be cleaned.

"We should be reaching the city by noon tomorrow." Dhother said. And cheers could be heard from all the Elves. "We will leave at dawn tomorrow and will not stop until we reach the city. Pack tonight." Dhother finished.

There was applause and all over the encampment that night, the Elves could be heard humming different songs as they went about their duty to pack up and pack light.

Blades were needlessly cleaned again although they were already sparkling under the pale moonlight. Fresh sets of clothings were set aside in preparation to enter the city in a better-looking shape the next day. The horses were brushed and they stand restlessly shifting their hooves ever so often, sensing that home was already near.

"You will have to do with this." Legolas said as he passed a set of neatly folded clothes to a surprised Ruby as she entered the tent. "Arrgeth is the most petite Elf among us. His clothes should be the only one that could suit you, although it will still be a little large."

He looked apologetically at Ruby, sensing her discomfort that she had to don on unfeminine clothes. Ruby's heart softened at the look. She would have put it on anyway even if it had been the clothes for a circus clown. "It's alright, Legolas. Don't worry about it. I wouldn't be able to do anything in a skirt anyway."

"I would see to it that the servants get you the appropriate attire once we have reached the palace." Legolas added quickly. Ruby smiled back at him thankfully and disappeared behind a curtain to change.

"How do I look?" She asked, as she emerged from behind the curtain a few minutes later.

Having moved at an incredible speed, she had already finished changing within a minute but without the aid of a mirror, she was unable to properly scrutinise her new attire. She stood there helplessly and waited for time to pass while making slight adjustments here and there.

The clothes barely fit and the pants was too long; a problem she easily solved by tucking it into her heavy duty boots.

She was disturbed when Legolas almost burst out in laughter but controlled it as professionally as he could.

"If not for the colour of your hair and eyes, you would have looked exactly like an Elf!" He exclaimed.

Ruby's eyes narrowed into slits as she said "You said 'Elf'. Not 'She-Elf'."

"Pardon my rudeness, my Lady." Legolas suddenly said in a serious tone. He even gave a half-bow to complete the formalities.

"You are forgiven, my dear Prince. But see that it does not happen again." Ruby squared her shoulders and answered mockingly in a much deeper voice.

They burst out in laughter, causing the few Elves near the tent to look at the direction in surprise.

_A/N: Yes. I know some of you are complaining why is this chapter so short. Well, don't worry :P I always upload chapters 'late'. So now that you are able to read Chapter 12, it only means that it is because I am developing well into Chapter 13 already. _


	13. Chapter 13: City

Chapter 13: City

Ruby finally found she had some time alone with Adam. Legolas rode in front with Dhother, leading the entire group of riders.

It was a sight. Everyone was dressed in the best or cleanest set of clothing they had.

Ruby was glad she was wearing the garments of another Elf. It made her less distinct as both she and Adam merged nicely with the riders amongst the sea of greens and browns with the occasional silver added into the mix.

The only trait that made them stand out was their dark-coloured hair and almost gold tinged eyes; all the other Elves had blonde hair and blue eyes; a combination that would have Alice giving them the nickname 'Cupid'.

Adam's stature made it easy for the Elves to find an attire that suited him so perfectly. It looked like it was tailored for him. Ruby could not help but feel sore. Some guys have all the luck.

Recalling how Castril had burst out laughing when he saw her in her new outfit and how even the stern-faced Dhother was trying to suppress a grin, she wondered if she really looked that horrible.

But Ruby was quite off. 'Horrible' was not a way to describe her appearance. It was because the Elves were not accustomed to looking at a lady cross dressing, though she did look a little worse for wear right now as any human or even vampire would if they had gone without proper baths for such an awful long time.

As they entered, the city gates creaked happily to open and welcome the convoy back, the entire party was bathed in flower petals showered by the hordes of Elves that lined the sides of the road.

Adam and Ruby both wondered to themselves if the Elves in the city did the same thing every time a group came back. They soon got their answer from the way the crowd bowed and greeted the Prince, and the way a group of women that screamed the Prince's name and then burst out in uncontrollable giggles.

Adam threw a glance at Ruby when he sensed her frustration. It had nothing to do with jealousy; Ruby always had a low threshold for groups of giggling girls.

He was rather amused that his sister still felt the same. Years ago they came across a group of giggling teenage campers after hunting when they were on their way out of the forest.

Thank goodness they were already finished with their hunting or else what Ruby could have done to them would be unimaginable. They had been shamelessly flirting with Adam who was quite caught up with the attention until he noticed Ruby staring daggers his way.

"Is that your girlfriend?" the most observant one asked him.

"Nope. That's my sister." he answered her.

The group of girls launched into a giggling fit for the next minute, halfway through which Ruby rolled her eyes and got up to her feet, signaling to Adam that she will be making a move first.

When Adam had broken out of his recollections, he noticed that Ruby was not so pissed off now. In fact, as the horses slowly inched forward in the crowded city, she was more preoccupied with brushing off the petals that had landed all over her by the over-excited crowd.

He knew he was not much better off as well. The Elves had a knack for staying so flawlessly clean. Vampires could do the same but it required much more effort. He consciously brushed a hand through his short hair and realised how terribly entangled it was. And it was not just because of flower petals. Bits and pieces of the forests were in his hair as well.

They came to a stop in front of a grand looking building with colossal pillars lining the front, looking much more grand than the other buildings they had passed by in the city. This must be the palace.

There was a group of Elves standing expectantly in a line. In the middle was a wise-looking Elf with a huge smile on his face. His eyes looked wise beyond his years yet his skin was radiant and youthful.

Legolas got off his horse and embraced the Elf for some time before finally leaning back. The proud smile on the Elf's face was unmistakable.

And that was the first time Adam and Ruby finally saw King Thranduil.

Following the others, Adam and Ruby got down from their horses.

"Now, where are my guests?" Thraduil asked. His voice was deep and powerful. It reminded Ruby of some of the mountain lions when they roared a battle cry before attacking them.

Thranduil caught sight of their dark heads and moved towards them as the others cleared the way for their King. Ruby and Adam bowed down.

"We are grateful and honoured with the invitation, King Thranduil." Adam greeted the King.

"As am I with the fact that you saved Dhother's life!" the King replied him, and then added, "I did hear about one of your compatriot returning but was told it was a man. Did the lady choose to return in his place instead?"

"She did not leave, my Lord." Adam replied his bizarre question.

King Thranduil's eyes continued scanning the Elves behind them curiously. Ruby decided to save everyone's time and stepped forward "My Lord, the lady that which you spoke of... That would be me."

She was mildly irritated by the fact that Legolas did not make the formal introductions. He seemed more like he was waiting for the misunderstanding to take place so that he could delight in it.

Prince or not, Ruby made a mental note to wring Legolas' neck later as soon as she had the chance.

Claemar had been fussing over Ruby for what must have been eternity. She was the female servant who was designated to be in charge of attending to Ruby's every need.

What started as being slightly annoyance towards Claemar gradually became one of pity. Ruby could not imagine anyone having to do so much work concerning dresses, make up and baths. It must have been terribly boring.

But if it was that boring, Claemar was obviously not showing it. She good-naturedly rattled on about how much excitement there was and how everyone was awaiting for the party's return. How long it had been that the King had held a banquet. Moreover, it was one that had guests that were non-Elf.

Ruby knew that elves were immortal but she was learning to tell their age, and it was obvious that this particular she-elf is very young. The way she was so easily excited over everything, the speed at which she moved as if she was in a permanent hurry reflecting impatience only present in youths.

"Claemar, why did you choose to work in the Palace?" Ruby asked just as Claemar was taking in a deep breath to continue her previous conversation topic.

She paused, seemingly delighted that Ruby asked her a question. "There is no 'why', Lady Ruby. It is compulsory for all Elves to serve the Royal Household at least some point in their lives, especially when they are still young. It is just that some of us liked it so much we decided to stay on permanently."

"So you are fulfilling that compulsory obligation?" Ruby asked.

Claemar nodded her head vigorously.

Ruby was beginning to understand how Mirkwood works. It was similar to the real world, except even their ladies had to serve a stated period of 'military service'. She frowned. At least Elves were more fairr in this aspect.

"But I am enjoying myself. Every single day, every single moment." Claemar quickly added, when she realized Ruby did not look too happy about this compulsory obligation they were talking about.

"Good for you. And on top of that, you are doing a great job!" Ruby praised her, as she was finally done and looking at her own reflection in the mirror.

Earlier on when Ruby had just entered the room, she gave a short scream. If Adam had heard it, she would not hear the end of it, but luckily Adam's guest room was some way off down the corridor.

She had caught sight of her own reflection in the mirror after so many days of looking at her own face through the blurred reflection of the bubbling stream.

It was unsightly. Her face had been rather full of stubborn dirt (that Claemar had taken a lot of effort and soap to scrub off). Legolas must have warned them in advance that the Cold Ones were vastly different from Elves and Men, for Claemar did not even jump back at the first contact with Ruby's pale cold skin that was as hard as stone.

And they were not lying when they said she looked like one of the Elf soldiers when she was dressed in Arrgeth's clothes. She had well-toned arms back when she was a human which made her slightly more muscular than the average girl on the street though she could not recall what was her occupation before her transformation. Her broad shoulders made her fill out Arrgeth's top nicely, though she had to fold the sleeves up or else they would be too long for her.

She studied herself in the mirror now. Her hair, finally cascading down her shoulders after being tied in a pony tail. After Claemar's careful wash, its gloss was restored. Ruby was glad to notice that it finally looked a deep dark brown again when it had looked like black (probably because of all the layers of dirt accumulated on it).

The dress that Claemar had helped her put on was a deep royal blue and revealed her pale white shoulders. She self-consciously pulled a few locks of her hair to the front to cover her bare shoulders.

Claemar observed that the maiden was quite shy and reprimanded herself for choosing such a revealing dress. She should have been more considerate in noticing the style of the clothing rather than cater to her own personal colour preference. Yet when she offered to change to another, Ruby rejected her offer.

"Why? It's a beautiful dress, isn't it?" Ruby said.

"It is indeed, Lady Ruby. But you do not look comfortable in it." She said, with a tinge of sadness.

"Claemar, this…" Ruby gestured to her entire self. "…is all your hard work and effort. I will not let it go unappreciated. And please, just call me Ruby. I'm not used to the term you always speak in front of my name." She joked while dramatically placing the back of her hand on her forehead as if it bothered her so.

Claemar could not help but chuckle in reply when a knock interrupted her laughter. She rushed to open the door and there Adam stood, fresh and clean and glowing. Maybe it was the silver and blue tunic that they dressed him in.

"Is my dear sister ready? I hope she hasn't been much of a trouble." Adam spoke to her. Claemar was obviously at a loss of words. She bowed and stood to the side, allowing Adam to look into the room.

Ruby had already sensed that it was her brother at the door and was making her way to him.

As she took his arm that he offered her, she turned around and looked at the still star-struck Claemar "Claemar, you will be with us for the dinner, am I right?"

The poor girl could only nod her head meekly in reply as both Ruby and Adam looked at her. "Very well then. Let's go." Ruby gestured.

On the way, as they were led by both Claemar and another Elf that accompanied Adam, Ruby whispered to her brother "I love their shoes! Comfortable, practical. Not like those damn heels that always get stuck in drain covers."

"Maybe you should bring some back to Rosalie. Alice would just throw it away after just one use." Adam suggested.

They arrived in the garden some distance away from the Palace. It was a big field right beside the Palace. The outskirts were surrounded by buildings that consists of shops and houses. It was amazing that the Palace was not protected by perimeter walls and heavily armed guards. It seemed like the people were able to interact with the Royal Family frequently, seeing as how Thranduil and Legolas were warmly greeting the other Elves.

It was heartwarming to see the people and their government's interaction with each other.

"Ruby? Is that you?"

It was Castril's voice. She turned to face the speaker.

"There you are! I've been looking all over for you!" Adam exclaimed before Castril could say more. Adam clapped a hand on Castril's back and then led him away into the crowd like old friends heading for a catch-up session.

Puzzled, Ruby looked to Claemar as if for an answer but the she-Elf looked equally baffled.

"My Lady, allow me to lead you to your seat." Claemar offered.

She nodded her head appreciatively, not just for her help but for her companionship in a place full of strangers. Carefully holding up the skirt slightly so that it would not brush against the floor, she walked gracefully to the table, aware that she was starting to attract attention because of her brown hair.

"Must I?" She asked, unsure that she was supposed to sit at the table right in front of the field that had been placed on an additional platform so that she was plainly under the scrutiny of everyone.

"My Lady…" Claemar began, but quickly corrected herself when Ruby lifted a brow at her salutation. "… Ruby, it is a must. This is the King's table and the banquet is held to honour you and Master Adam."

"I guess I have to sit here eventually, but I think I'd rather do so only when the table is more filled." She said and hurriedly stepped down from the platform into the awaiting arms of Adam.

"Now, my little sister, where did you think you are going? The banquet is about to start." Adam teased.

"Well, anywhere off this platform. I didn't know you would get here so fast. You looked like you had a lot to say to Castril when you left me standing there." Ruby sulked. "Care to explain?"

"All in good time, Ruby. All in good time." Adam replied, and left it at that. Like a gentleman, he pulled out a chair for her as he took a seat in the adjacent chair beside her.

Claemar left Ruby after promising to be back by her side to escort her back to her room.

King Thranduil, Legolas, Dhother and some other Elves soon joined the table, with the King sitting beside Adam, and Legolas taking his seat beside Ruby.

"My dearest Elves of the Woodland Realm. We rejoice today at the casualty that was prevented with the invaluable aid of the Cold Ones." Ruby winced at the mention. Legolas was such a tattletale, and now the King had just announced their presumed 'Race' to the entire Kingdom.

Having done it all too many times, she shut out the conversation droning on by the King and shifted her attention to the huge amount of food-laden platters spread out in front of them.

She wanted to lean over to Legolas, curious as to know what would be done with the leftovers, but his blue eyes could see nothing but his father and his ears were occupied with the boring speech.

She quickly glanced up again as applause was heard, just in time to make eye contact with the King who was looking at her and Adam in gratitude. Not understanding why Thranduil was going to all that expense. It wasn't as if they had saved his son from anything.

Unbeknownst to outsiders, Dhother was the last Commander still remaining behind from the Last Alliance of Elves and Men whereas the other commanders were either slain or had departed Middle Earth in search for eternal peace offered by the Valar in Grey Havens.

Though King Thranduil is an impartial ruler but his respect and strong intention to ensure Dhother's safety was paramount. One of the last few memories he had had of his father, Oropher, was when he and Dhother were discussing before the battle.

Dhother had pleaded against Oropher's decision to charge at the enemy in a surprise early attack and to merge under the admirable leadership of the High King of the Noldor, Gil-Galad.

However, Oropher insisted that it would be a greater advantage to catch the enemy unprepared – a decision that also resulted in Oropher's untimely death as well as the high casualty rates of the other Elves.

Dhother was upset not because his proposition was paid no heed but rather he was not able to prevent Oropher from falling in battle. In exchange, he remained behind to serve Oropher's heir, Thranduil faithfully until right up till the King decides to sail.

Looking back, all these seemed to have taken place a long time ago. But they were here, now, all gathered together at the very table on the platform. And this was only possible because of two very pale and very cold and as of now, very uncomfortable guests that is aware of him scrutinizing them very carefully.

"Is the food to your liking?" King Thranduil asked as any concerned hosts would.

"It definitely is, my Lord. We have not tasted such great fare for a long time." Adam politely replied while Ruby smiled at the King who was looking over the both of them.

Satisfied with their answer, the King nodded and started on the food laid in front of him. He had a hundred burning questions for them, but there was no hurry. They were in his territory now and he could take his time. Filling up his empty stomach was the main concern for now.

King Thranduil was not the only one examining her that night. Ruby was concentrating on nothing but chewing on her food, breaking them up into much smaller pieces to facilitate swallowing when she realized a pair of eyes that were on her.

"It's rude to stare." She said, after she gulped down whatever it was in her mouth. She hoped that it was not because he noticed her accidentally chewing on a piece of bone or whatever it is that was not meant to be eaten.

"My apologies. You just look different tonight." Legolas smiled back at her, relieved that she could still crack a joke when he had been so rudely gawking at her.

She gave him a wry smile and turned her attention back to the rest of the food that Legolas generously helped onto her plate. She could notice from the corner of her eye that Adam was in no better state himself.

If only good ol' Seth was here.


	14. Chapter 14

A/N: It's official. I've found a job after being unemployed for the last 6 months!  This also means that updates will be affected, unfortunately. But I promise all of you that I will always be doing my best to update!

Chapter 14: Casual

Dinner ended with a very extremely awkward dance. The first song was with Thranduil and the next was with Legolas.

Flutes, harps and drums played out a wonderful tune that was catchy and uplifting.

Both father and son were very gracious as it was painfully obvious that Ruby had no inkling how to dance. They moved slowly, ignoring the beats of the songs, and smiled at her. Ruby thought that they were being extremely polite and patient, for if she were them, she would have preferred not to continue the dance and sit at a corner to save herself from the embarrassment.

Her vampire reflexes did not aid her much because she was greatly restrained - the small clearing of the field reserved for dancing was over-crowded with the other Elves eager to dance the night away under the stars.

The elf dances were also much more different than the typical ballroom dances that Ruby had only bothered to watch a few seconds on TV before flicking to another channel.

It was faster and to the cheerful rhythm; more like a jumpy folk dance that consists of a lot of skipping. Nothing romantic and slow like the ones they usually play in school dances. Nor were the songs fast enough to bang your head to like Trance or Techno.

Already not much of a dancer herself, Ruby found herself stuck in-between and dancing totally off-rhythm to the music that was played out by the joyful band of Elves seated at the corner.

The second song finally came to an end. Ruby curtsied, signaling her desire to end the dance with Legolas. Unable to protest, which he would have did if they were still outside in the forest, he courteously acceded to her request, much to the delight of the other attractive elf maidens who were impatiently awaiting their turn to dance with the Prince.

Ruby heaved a sigh of relief, seeing as how Legolas was bombarded by the other ladies and would not have time for her. She could not deny, either, that she was quite flattered by the Prince's attention. Legolas was not a bad-looking Elf.

He was not the romantic type, but she was not keen on romantic types either for those types usually would charm the socks off other ladies as well.

He was funny, and this made him nice to be with.

But she should really start sounding him out about the bothersome part. Legolas had the habit of sticking to her like they were Siamese twins and she hated it.

_Wait, _her mind screeched to a stop.

Why did she even bother to analyse so much about him?

_Why do I even bother to…_

"Finally!" Castril's sudden appearance almost made her jump in shock. She laughed at his triumphant expression as he shouted at her. Quietly, she reprimanded herself for not paying attention to her surroundings even though she was deemed to be in a safe place.

_Funny annoying chatty and possibly Seth's twin, Castril._

"Where were you all night?" She teased.

He smiled back. "You look wonderful." He commented.

"Thank you." She said. She stood out distinctively from the crowd, one of the only two dark-haired individuals among the masses in the very rare blue dress.

Blue was a dye reserved only for royalty and the privileged, for it was an expensive colour. It is a colour craved by many Elf-maidens for it matches the natural eye colour that they were born with, yet not many were willing to spend lavishly on the colour, much less an entire garb of blue.

But Ruby was noticeable not just merely for the colour of her attire but also because of the way her ivory skin shone under the full moon.

It was almost glittering. The elves who had escorted them back to the city attributed it to the glitter lotion that they had all already placed their orders with (through Adam).

The others who had no knowledge of this 'special lotion' had thought that their eyes were playing tricks on them.

"You don't look too bad yourself." She added honestly. It was true. She had never ever seen Castril in any other colours except the boring green and brown that they are often dressed in to camouflage expertly into the greenery.

And today, here he was, standing before her wearing one of the uniforms worn by the guards of the Palace. The uniform was made up mostly of Silvery Grey, needless to say, it must be Mirkwood's trademark colour.

He looked much smarter than he usually was. Ruby thought that it must be his clothes that changed his look dramatically. But maybe it was also because she was finally looking at him properly today without the layers of grit and sweat covering him. It was amazing what a simple bath can do to refresh someone.

Vampires too, need to take a bath occasionally to prevent themselves from stinking too much. Clothes worn for several days in a row were bound to stink even though their bodies do not perspire.

"Would I have the honour?" he asked, bowing down while raising a hand to her, signaling his intention to dance.

Ruby shook her head but could not miss the flash of disappointment in Castril's eyes, so she quickly added "Let's take a walk instead."

His expression changed and he smiled again while offering an arm to her. She took it gladly and they left the party behind while they walked towards the city.

It was empty and silent. The whole city must have been at the banquet. The only sound that filled the silence was the chirping of what must have been thousands of crickets.

They both automatically stopped at a bench by the side of the pathway they were walking along and sat down. Castril held on to Ruby's hand that was still on his arm to prevent her arm from slipping away as they took their seat.

They sat side-by-side without speaking to each other. But Castril was the first to break the comfortable silence between them.

"Ruby?" He began. "If you do not mind me asking – I have been quite curious, for there are no Cold Ones in Middle Earth. What are the Cold Ones, actually?"

She smiled at him before she asked. "What do you mean?"

"Well, it is hard to believe you are not from the Race of Men, for you and Adam look exactly like one, yet the difference is obvious. Your speed, movement, fury and stamina." He continued. "The Cold Ones… are they descended from Men?"

"We were once Men. All Cold Ones were once Men." she explained.

"What happened?" he asked.

"We were transformed. It is hard to describe to you, Castril. Middle Earth and where we come from are completely different places. But if it helps you understand better, you should see it as an illness. If you get the illness, you are transformed into a Cold One." Ruby said, not knowing exactly how to tell Castril everything.

It was better that he not know too much, although Ruby was sure Castril would have kept a secret properly if he was asked to. That was one major difference between him and the tattletale Legolas.

He nodded his head thoughtfully with a hand rubbing his chin. Ruby's mind drifted to whether Elves even grow stubbles? For the record, she had never seen them shave throughout the journey in the forest.

"An illness… So is it a good or bad thing to turn into a Cold One?" He probed further.

"Depends on how you see it. Some people yearn to have this disease. Some would rather die than turn into one." She answered cautiously.

"What about you?" He asked, looking straight at her now.

Ruby was starting to get uneasy. Was Castril intentionally tricking her into answering or did he ingeniously think up of it as he went along.

Just in time, a blast was heard in the distance, followed immediately by loud cheers radiating from the field party that they had left. Ruby looked up at it, admiring the small firework that was lighting up the city.

She got up to her feet. "Well, I must get back now. Or Adam will be worried." She said, and just walked off in a relaxed manner, expertly having avoided his question.

It was just a casual conversation between her and Castril. She was sure Castril would not be too stupid enough not to sense her discomfort, nor would he be curious enough to chase after her and ask her to answer it.

She was right. He did not. In fact, he continued sitting and staring after her as her figure disappeared around the bend.

She joined the Party once again. No one had missed her while she was away. Not even her good ol' brother Adam, who was obviously quite enjoying the attention of being one of the VIP of the party.

She wondered why she was not privileged enough to enjoy the same level of attention from the opposite sex and if she even wanted to be noticed, she had to try so hard.

There were times she did voice this issue to Esme who just consoled her in her own motherly fashion that she was a student after all and should concentrate on studies. But that was just Esme. Ruby knew that she may not have equally fantastic grades as compared to her other siblings, but it was good enough grades to keep her out of the dreaded remedial and supplementary classes.

So what if vampires possesses excellent memory that she could learn things even if she was actually daydreaming, but bothering to answer those dreadful test papers right down to the very last lucid detail is another bother.

Adam and Seth did tell her that there was nothing wrong with her physically. It was just that she looked quite intimidating when she did not smile. She was convinced that this was not the case. How could anyone smile all the time? It was not like she was some reception staff in a posh hotel, and even then, those staff work shift hours and do not smile all the time.

The final explanation that she finally settled on was that it was lost in her. She could not remember much about being a Human. She was young back then but it all felt like it was so long ago she could not recall much about it. One thing for sure, whatever attractiveness she had when she was a Human was unfortunately not carried over once she had turned into a Vampire.

And then she could fly.

She deemed it as a dastard talent that she was afraid of letting others find out about. She would rather be attractive than fly. Any one would. Any vampire would.

With superhuman strength, you can already jump up to ridiculous heights. What more could you do with flying? No one needs to jump up to the top of the empire state building in one leap.

Her mind wandered back to her transformation. Or rather, what she could remember of it.

A dark alley. Leaking water pipes. And the only clear sound that was heard was the sharp taps her high heels made as she walked quickly back to her cheap rented apartment located at the dodgy side of town.

Her gut feeling had already warned her that she was being followed. She must have turned around a few dozen times to check but each time there was never a single soul there.

The last time she turned around to look again, there was nothing there. But as she turned back, there was a man. The rational side of her deduced that she must have been too occupied with looking behind that she did not realize this man walking towards her from the front. But the other part argued that it would have been impossible to not notice a person walking towards you until he was so close.

They were soon close to walking past each other. She could not help but stare at him, trying to see his face; to see his facial expression and assure herself that this man did not mean any harm.

Then the man suddenly stopped. He looked directly at her and all she could do was freeze in terror. Her legs would not obey her weakening will to just break the gaze and run.

He moved closer and closer.

Finally, as his teeth clamped down on her neck, she let out a shrill scream that she was sure would go unnoticed.

The venom that would end her fragile human life and bestow immortality started spreading. It was like someone injected acid into her blood and it was biting away everything inside her. The irony was that it was so painful, she could not even continue screaming as her heart pumped the acid, spreading it throughout her body, multiplying the pain.

As her vision was fading out from the pain, she heard a voice from far shouting at her attacker. A struggle ensued between what sounded like two animals. There was growling and snarling. She felt herself lifted off the ground as she finally blacked out.


	15. Chapter 15: Meadow

Chapter 15: Meadow

When Ruby got back, the music was still playing although it was plain that all the eating had stopped. She was thankful for that. Another mouthful and she was so sure she needed to induce herself to throw up. The things her Vampire family would say to that.

Carlisle would always say that if you can't digest it then don't consume it. It's such a waste. And then he would go on for the next few hours about the ways you can dodge trying to eat in front of humans without them noticing. Or if not, make it appear that you are eating.

That was easy with humans. They are so much less observant. But elves! Elves wait for you to swallow the mouthful of food and they even bothered asking for your opinion of what you had thought.

_My opinion? Well, the meat is overcooked. Way overcooked! _Ruby thought dryly.

Carefully standing away from the crowd, she found herself cornered next to a tree and promptly stood there, leaning against it to blend into the party goers.

Legolas was still preoccupied with the she-elves. Ruby could not help but smile every time he looked over apologetically. In her opinion, he did not owe her anything.

She scanned the crowd looking for her brother and found him with the King, engaged in conversation that was probably full of food and wine.

Adam was lucky. He was a chef in his 'previous life'. He seemed to remember a lot of it because he probably spent a lot of time to recall about his Human life. And if there was something that was worse than having Flying as your hidden talent, it was to cook.

The function of their taste buds seemed to have vanished along with the vulnerability of a Human life. Adam often pondered over the logic and reason behind this. He yearned for the taste of food and he knew how chefs always delight in the expression of those who consume their creations.

He does the expression part so well and sing praises of the chefs that were with them during the hunt that sometimes both Ruby and Seth felt like he was overdoing it. The chefs, of course, did not mind one bit.

They adored Adam because he appreciated their hard work especially since as Adam puts it, they were 'mobile' chefs and had to always prepare and ration food in advance. Ruby did not have much to protest over this for she knew it was probably this excellent relationship between Adam and the chefs that spared Seth from being tied up whenever he pestered the chefs to cook faster.

Ruby realized she must have been very caught up in her own thoughts. Because when she glanced over at Adam again, he was actually playing arm-wrestling with another Elf. An Elf that looked easily twice the size of Adam.

_This is going to be interesting, _she thought as she quickly made her way over.

A crowd was quickly gathering among the two competitors. Adam was grinning while his opponent's face was serious and strict. Anyone would be, especially if their King was around witnessing the friendly competition.

Ruby could not help but notice the group of she-Elves standing behind Adam, and the group of Elves standing behind the burly Elf, each group occasionally shouting words of encouragement.

King Thranduil was game enough to be the judge for the match.

He looked left and right to make sure that the audience was standing comfortably before he lifted a glass and proclaimed "May the best Elf… or Cold One… win!"

As the glass came down hard on the table, in the process splashing some of its contents on their arms, Burly Elf made a sound which sounded like a roar and pushed with his might.

Ruby frowned at this. If Adam had been a human, she was quite sure that his arms would have been broken by now, and that was a fact she did not like. Did the muscular elf really intended to do so? She hoped that it was because he had heard from the other Elves of Adam's incredible might that led him to do this.

The crowd gasped in pleasant surprise at Adam's ability to withstand the power that Kirryan delivered. Everyone who was there knew that Kiiryan had already given all his strength and yet the only movement visible was a slight swaying of the hand towards Adam before he easily gained control and held the hand in place.

Adam was quietly smiling away. Nobody knew for sure whether Kiiryan's face was beetroot red with embarrassment or because of the force he had exerted.

This situation only resulted in the group of she-elves behind Adam to squeal in delight. So maybe she-Elves and female humans are not so different after all.

Unable to take the noise and already knowing the outcome to the match, Ruby decided to retreat back into the crowd, but not before Legolas had spotted her.

He had always enjoyed the attention received from the opposite sex during such celebrations. Without a doubt, he was always popular among the ladies, but tonight was different; he had not wanted anything else more than the ladies to turn to another elf and shower their affection or cast their puppy eyes on because there was a someone he wanted to get to know better tonight.

Before she had time to wonder where she should go or what to do, the sound of someone approaching her made her turn. But before her eyes even caught sight of the person, she already knew who it was from the scent of freshly cut grass.

She threw him a grateful smile, glad for his company in this unfamiliar gathering and comfortably took his arm that he offered.

He brought her to another field. A much smaller one located at the quieter side of the palace. There were no benches there for them to sit but she found herself just as comfortable seated beside him on the damp grass.

It would have made no difference to her at all even if they stood throughout the conversation but physical stamina aside, she still appreciated to 'feel' comfortable.

The only light that illuminated the small meadow ahead of them was the moon and the stars. She found it all rather romantic, except she was with the wrong person; there were no sparks between her and Legolas.

She did not speak much, afraid that she would reveal too much, but thankfully it was not an issue here for Legolas did most of the talking.

He spoke about the happenings when he was young and the trouble he and Castril got themselves into and how they tried to find a way out of. The conversation was punctuated very frequently with bouts of laughter between them. Ruby was impressed. Thranduil certainly made sure that no distance or boundaries existed between him and his subjects and the people.

Apparently he also made sure that this was the same for his only son. After all, it was quite rare for a Prince to mix with other kids his age and from the conversation, she could tell how close the Prince and Castril were, although Castril was the son of a peasant.

Only realizing that it was way past bedtime for the Prince when he unsuccessfully tried to stifle a yawn, she suggested that it was time for them to retire back to their chambers.

Legolas reluctantly agreed and gallantly helped her onto her feet. She took his hand and got up, dusting her dress to make sure that the damp grass did not stick to it. She did not like the idea that a dirty dress returned would get Claemar into trouble.

As Legolas led her back to the Palace with her hand on his arm once again they passed by the clearing where the dinner was held and it was already empty and dark.

A cold wind blew across, gently rustling the trees. Legolas took off his outer coat that was worn over his vest and put it around Ruby's shoulders. Because she is a vampire, Ruby felt the coldness of the breeze but was not affected by it. She rejected his kind offer and explained politely "My Prince, I am not a Elf-Maiden. The cold does not affect us."

He nodded his head at the reminder and put his coat back on. But still, he kept an arm around her. She may be a Cold One but maybe she would appreciate his warmth; and he was right.

Unbeknownst to them, they were being observed by King Thranduil from a window in one of the towers of the Palace. He shook his head in disapproval. One of his fears was coming true; his only son seemed to be falling for a Non-Elf, moreover, it was from a Kind that was not familiar to Middle Earth.

This was one of the times where he wished his lovely wife was still around. She would have known how to bring the message across gently to Legolas. Or at least she would have known ways to coax her husband into accepting the choice of their son.


	16. Chapter 16

Chapter 16: Hunt

Giving the excuse that he was afraid she would not be able to find the way back to her room, he walked her all the way back to the door. This time, Ruby did not refuse knowing that he was too tired to afford an argument, but yet not too tired to walk her back.

Before she opened the door, she turned back to look at him. He was staring expectantly at her.

"Good night, Legolas." She said, after deliberating for some time not knowing what she was expected to do.

"Rest well, my lady." He replied her uneasily.

He did not move an inch so Ruby stayed put as well, staring back at him, wondering what it was that was holding Legolas back.

She noticed that his face was gradually inching closer and closer to hers. If she had a heart beat, it would have been pounding away very fast, in fact, as fast as Legolas' was. It was exceptionally loud to her due to her acute sense of hearing.

Weirdly enough, she found herself with no intention nor reason to reject his advance.

She closed her eyes in anticipation, waiting for the kiss.

But suddenly the door behind her flew open. Both she and Legolas whirled around in horror, like two kids caught making out by their parents, though in their case, nothing had even happened yet.

It was Claemar.

"Lady Ruby, where have you been all night?" She exclaimed, seemingly ignorant of what was about to take place between her Prince and her charge.

"I…. Well, we…." Ruby stammered, not knowing what to say. It was not like her to lose her cool. It had not happened for a long time except when there was this particular incident where a small rock she threw accidentally punctured the tyres of one of Rosalie's cars. Needless to say, Rosalie threw a fit for days although Emmett solved the problem.

Claemar finally realized the Prince's existence. "Prince Legolas." she bowed apologetically. "Pardon me. I did not notice you were with Lady Ruby."

He waved her off nonchalantly. All traces of embarrassment relating to what almost occurred between them were erased.

Ruby and Legolas stayed remained silent as Claemar looked back and forth between them.

"I shall take my leave." Claemar said out aloud to no one in particular, apparently having finally gotten the hint.

She quickly retreated and shut the door behind her as she went back into the room.

Ruby could sense that Claemar was still standing behind the door, probably trying to eavesdrop on them.

"Well…" They both said at the same time. It made them both giggle like teenagers; the very sound that Ruby had hated the most.

Then it was silence again as they stared at each other.

"You look awfully tired, Legolas. Go to bed." She chided him. Legolas was tired alright, but he would never admit it. He was reluctant to even turn away from her. Ruby may not realize but as he was busy superficially entertaining the ladies at the dance, he could not help but keep glancing at her.

His heart had sunk when he noticed Castril and Ruby leaving the dance yet he could not find any valid reason to excuse himself from the party. Seeing someone you like leaving with another guy was bad enough, he would not like the elf-maidens feel the same miserable way. His kind hearted and considerate self eventually made him stay on and complete this unofficial obligation as the Prince of Mirkwood; to dance with whichever lady that requests for a dance with the Prince.

Thankfully Adam was there to divert some attention away from the Prince. He was (half) of the reason for the party and everyone was excited to meet someone of another Kind who claims that they did not originate from Middle Earth. More conveniently, Adam was a looker.

He had heaved a huge sigh of relief inwardly when he saw Ruby making her way back. By then, most of the elf-maidens had already been charmed off their feet by Adam's multi-talent in demonstration of weaponry, musical instruments as well as his sense of humour as he recalled to everyone the few encounters with the Orcs. Legolas was quite sure that all Adam actually had to do was to just smile and the she-elves would have all felt faint. And this was not just applicable to Adam.

Ruby as well had the same effect on him. He wished he could make her smile more for she looked stunning whenever she did. But her smile never lasted and even if it did, it never reached her eyes. It was like she was worried over something else. He did recall her saying that the world where she, Adam, and Seth came from was a much more complicated one.

He had always wondered if this was the reason that made her smiles so rare. But whatever it was that made her look so distant and sad, it certainly did not affect her brother and Seth. They were as cheerful and as easygoing as any of the Elves he knew.

"If you're not moving, I might have to push you back to your room." Ruby said, with her arms folded to better bring across her message.

Legolas broke out of his thoughts when he heard her speak. He had heard her threat clear enough and actually quite liked the idea. But it was rude and impolite for a lady to have to personally escort a Prince back to his own room, and furthermore in his own Palace!

"I would leave that for another day, my Lady. Good night." He bowed slightly to her.

Ruby caught his cheeky underlying message and laughed. It was a wrong move for it made Legolas want to linger around her longer. But knowing that holding her up meant that she was going to have less time to rest made him a little more determined to retire back to his room.

His eyes never left hers as he stepped closer and put a stray lock of hair behind her ear.

She closed her eyes, breathing in that same scent of cut grass, and then the scent started fading.

She opened her eyes and found herself standing alone in the corridor. Legolas had already walked off, and it was much faster than his usual striding pace.

Legolas could not tolerate being around her any longer and decided to quickly get away from her while he still had enough self-control to do so. It would have been a disgrace to the royal family as well as his father if he had even tried to do anything to a lady guest of Mirkwood.

Ruby gave a few seconds' grace to Claemar while listening to the she-Elf scurrying further back into the room before she opened the door.

Claemar was about to help her out of her dress when Ruby politely brushed her off. "I can do it myself Claemar. It's late already. Do go to bed."

"My Lady, I shall set the bathing water for you and then I shall retire to the second bedroom." Claemar said as she pointed to a direction where the other room is.

Ruby nodded. As Claemar disappeared, she decided to walk around and take a proper look at the chamber that she was staying in.

It was big enough to be some hotel suite with three bedrooms in all. The biggest one, with its own adjoining bathroom was meant to be for her. The other two bedrooms were equally big too, but less lavishly decorated. Each piece of furniture was carefully carved out of aromatic woods whose natural perfume filled up the rooms. She was extremely impressed; The Elves really took pride in their homes, or in this case, their Palace.

As Ruby stepped into a huge wooden bathtub that actually looked like a huge barrel, she leaned her head back. It was great to feel the warmth of the water against her cold skin. She closed her eyes and relaxed, the only sound in the air was from the crickets outside and the sounds of rustling bed sheets, indicating that the nosy Claemar was preparing for bed.

She had to give Claemar where credit was due, as she stepped out of the bath and reached for a towel that was placed conveniently within reach. And as she stepped out, there was a set of clothing in what should be their pyjamas. It was another gown-looking attire but was made of a sheer fabric that resembled satin.

It was a sleeveless dress that reached until her knees. Ruby put it on quickly and could not resist going to the mirror for a quick look.

She shook her head disbelievingly. This looked like something that the average student wears to school dances and the Elves actually wear this to bed? She had to admit though, that the fabric was soft and comfortable though a little suggestive. If she were a human, she would have seriously considered the possibility of bringing their items over to her world and starting a business selling this.

But she was no human. She was a vampire whose adoptive sister, Alice, had the uncanny ability to foresee the rise and fall of the stock market. Thus, money was never an issue with the Cullen family.

She got into bed and tossed and turned intentionally, crumpling the sheets up enough to make any one think that she had slept in it before. And then she got out of bed and put on a coat she found in the closet because the night gown was just a little too revealing.

Expertly without a sound, she crept out of her room, glad that the door's hinge did not make a sound at all as she slowly closed it without waking Claemar up though Claemar's bedroom was quite a distance from the door. It never hurts to play safe.

She walked silently down the corridor until she was sure this was where Adam's scent led to. She knocked on the door, just in case the servant tasked with attending to Adam was still awake.

It took about 5 seconds before the door was slowly opened.

Adam's eyes widened slightly. He asked, "Is that…"

"Pajamas? Yes." Ruby cut him off.

"You looked like you are going for a second round of dinner." He said.

Ruby looked at him. "And you look like you have not even bothered to wash up after the first dinner."

Adam shrugged.

"It's late. Why are you here?" he asked.

"Come on, it's not like you need to sleep. Let's go hunt." She suggested in a whisper.

"You are hungry already?" He whispered back.

She explained, "Of course not! But judging by your popularity here, I do not think that we are going back that soon. We should try to familiarize ourselves with possible sources so that we do not have figure a way out only when we are desperately hungry."

He nodded.

"My little sister is growing up. So it's not that bad to stumble upon Middle Earth after all."

In reply, she stuck a tongue out at him.

But Adam's face became serious again. "Ruby, I noticed that Legolas and Castril are always vying for your attention. You do realize the gravity of the situation if you handle it poorly."

She nodded her head solemnly, her smile had already vanished. "But what are you trying to get at?" She asked.

"Make a clear choice, or reject them both. Quickly." Adam stated.

But after some thought, he added, "Actually there are no choices to be made. You should just reject them. We are, after all, just visiting."

She pursed her lips and did not reply.

It was not easy to hunt. Speed was not a problem. Distance was. They had to be careful that they did not look like they traveled a thousand miles in their loaned clothes when they change out of it the following morning.

Ruby was lucky but Adam had to fold his long pants up until they were above knee-level in order to keep out the mud and dirt.

Because it was too near the city, they found it impossible to find wandering herds of animals to target on, and had to make do with the giant spiders that were found easily along the pathways; obviously trying to target on unsuspecting Elves.

They were surprised to find out the copious amount of blood that each spider offered as they had expected a lot lesser judging by the size of the body. The long hair legs of the spiders also did not look like it could hold great amounts of blood, though Adam worked out that it was probably due to the spiders' bloody diet that made their blood so nutritious and apparently tastier than the usual animals that they had hunted down.

The absence of a few giant spiders will definitely not be missed by any of the Elves in Mirkwood.

Having already settled the dead bodies of the spiders, ensuring that they are well out of sight, they were on the way back to the palace when Ruby suddenly stopped in her tracks.

Adam realized a sense of fear emitting from her and returned to her side. "What is it?" Adam asked.

She expressed her uncertainty, "Won't the trees give us away? Castril told me before that they understood the language of the trees!"

"They would not."

"Why are you so sure?" she asked him.

"They would have given us away earlier if they wanted to. It is not the first time we hunted within Mirkwood." He explained.

"I know that. But that is probably because Elves hardly came across the trees that we hunted in front of. The trees tonight are so near the city. Some are even near the pathways! They would possibly tell the very next Elf that passes the area!"

"Ruby, you're being paranoid. You should learn to tone down and wise up at the right time. They know we mean no harm to the Woodland Elves. They will not give us away. I, of all people, would know that." He straightened his back confidently, trying to make her put more trust in him.

"I wished Edward is here to confirm that." She muttered softly enough but Adam heard her word for word.

"Right. Now you're complaining that I'm not a good-enough companion?" Adam asked, with a mock hurt expression.

"I wouldn't say about the 'not good enough' part, but maybe more to the 'not fast enough'" she taunted.

"Alright, then let's see who wins." He dared her, game for the challenge.

They raced back but their finishing points were different for they each returned to their individual chambers.

Ruby stood in front of the mirror again, making slight adjustments. The speed of which they ran had made her hair disheveled enough to appear like she really had been sleeping through the night.

She hid under the covers of the bed and stared outside the window of the bedroom waiting for the first rays of the sun, her fingers unwittingly twirling the very same lock of hair that Legolas had tucked behind her ear.


	17. Chapter 17: Jealousy

Chapter 17: Jealousy

Legolas was just about to knock when Claemar opened the door, giving the poor girl a shock early in the morning. She recovered quickly enough to bow in greeting and stepped aside, allowing him space to enter.

Ruby was still putting the finishing touches to a new dress that she insisted Claemar leave it to her to deal with. She hated the feeling of being attended to because what can a Vampire not be able to do alone?

Actually there were a few things that came to mind, one of them included irritating herself. There had to be a Seth around to irritate the hell out of her since it was not possible for her to do so alone.

She was about to button what appeared to be the cuffs of the dress, wondering if it was some sort of unofficial impromptu modeling show she was putting on for the Palace when she noted a familiar scent and looked up to see Legolas walking in, his face fresh and beaming with excitement.

"May I?" He asked, looking at her wrist.

She responded to the offer by slipping the button swiftly through the hole. "May you what?" She asked, pretending to be ignorant yet her mischievous smile gave her away.

His laughter rang through the crisp morning air as he led her out of the room and towards the dining hall.

After Legolas had been summoned away by his father, Ruby found that Castril had conveniently materialized out of thin air as well and had invited her for another walk along the palace grounds. Adam was with them too, at first, but was soon eagerly whisked away by the chefs, and making himself more useful in the kitchen with the friends he got to know the night before.

"What is this place?" She asked Castril, as the sight of many other Elves, all preoccupied with charging at each other with weapons, or engaged in hand combat.

"Ruby, this is our training ground." Castril explained. It was hard not to detect a hint of pride in his voice.

"I'm assuming this is a favourite place of yours?" she asked despite knowing it was a question which she already knows the answer to.

He nodded her head and went on "Well, at least over here, I would not be able to offend you indirectly as I did last night." He smiled sheepishly.

"You were not as rude as you thought you were, Castril. Oh come on, I know you better than that!" She exclaimed, giving him a friendly punch to reassure him that she did not take offence at their awkward conversation the night before.

"Castril." A tall Elf greeted him, interrupting their friendly banter.

Ruby turned around to face the Elf, greeting him with a smile, with all credits to Adam who had reminded her umpteen times to tone down her attitude and be more dramatic when it comes to having to look friendly or happy.

It was not totally her fault that she finds it easier to snap away when in a foul mood, but having been in Middle Earth for quite some time, she found that her mood had considerably improved such that she did not have to force herself to smile as much. It just came naturally.

Esme would have been glad to know this new change in her. She was worried about Ruby as she was to any of her other adopted children.

Ruby recognized the Elf as the one from the previous night who lost to Adam. She did not need to stay till the end of the match to know the results.

Castril nodded in reply to his greeting, while Ruby could feel Kiiryan's eyes studying her. She felt the need to lash out again but managed to control herself.

"Is it a typical for an Elf to stare at another stranger like that?" She asked, staring back at Kiiryan blankly.

"If you would pardon my rudeness, my Lady, but it is not often that we Elves get to see those from other kind. Especially one that is not from Middle Earth." Kiiryan responded coldly.

Ruby could feel the scorn in his voice.

"I see. Then, enjoy staring." She answered back.

Castril was amused to witness this exchange. Of course, he did not like the way Kiiryan was reacting to their guest, but it was probably because he was feeling nsore about losing to Ruby's brother last night. But Ruby's response was a little too calm as compared to the way she usually screamed and shouted at Seth whenever he did something, anything, to annoy her.

Ruby was obviously one of great self-control for even he himself felt like doing something to Kiiryan to wake up his senses.

"We have heard of you and your brother's valour in battle. If you would care to perform a demonstration, we would be greatly honoured." Kiiryan stated loud enough to be heard by most of the other Elves who were present at the training ground.

_Sore loser_, Ruby thought to herself. She then recalled how Castril and Legolas did mention that women were usually not allowed in battle because they were deemed to be more fragile and vulnerable.

This would mean that Kiiryan's point of view would have not been much different from the two Elves.

_So, I am being underestimated,_ she thought.

"Very well," she said, accepting his invitation. "How should I go about it?"

Kiiryan looked mildly surprised that she took up his challenge. He pondered for awhile. "My lady, as our guest, you shall have the privilege to choose. Is there any weapon of choice?" At least he was polite enough to offer her some options.

"I would prefer hand-to-hand combat, as is our forte. We do not perform as well with weapons." Ruby chose, knowing that she had dealt a second surprise to the arrogant Elf.

"And who would you choose as your opponent?" He sneered.

She was irate with this bigheaded Elf standing in front of her with his arms crossed and chin held high in the air, but she did almost laughed out loud when she noticed Castril retreating very slightly when Kiiryan asked about her preference for opponent.

"Why, I thought since you were the one who suggested this demonstration, it would be you." She pointed out, her eyes widening to bring across a seemingly innocent appearance.

She picked up some words whispered among the Elves before one of them left the group that was slowly gathering around. She did not know the Elf who left but she overheard that he was tasked with the important job of fetching the Healer because he was the fastest runner among them.

_That's good. He would need it,_ she thought, as she got into her pseudo fighting stance just for the sake of looking like an expert.

Kiiryan was polite, at first. She could sense that his punches throw towards her face was in a half-hearted manner, probably because he was afraid of hurting her after all. But the punches got faster as he realized that his efforts were in vain.

The punches and the occasional kicks that he delivered were all missing her as she dodged them so quickly she became a blur for the eyes to follow.

The Elves who witnessed it could only watch in awe.

Ruby was sick of having to dodge the punches thrown in her direction. Elves apparently have a very good stamina too, though it was one that was drainable. She caught one of his fist as it narrowly missed her again and twisted his arm, throwing Kiiryan off his feet as he twirled his body around to prevent the arm from being broken.

It resulted in him landing really hard on the floor. She could even hear the sound of air escaping his lungs as he landed on the hard earth, just in time for the Healer to run to his side.

The crowd gathered even nearer to Kiiryan as everyone wanted to make sure he was alright.

Ruby met Castril's eyes amongst the crowd. She thrust her thumb to another direction signaling for him to leave and they both laughingly fled the scene of the crime.

Legolas stepped out of the Study where after breakfast, his father had drained on and on about Ruby.

It was true that he did have some special feelings for her though he had insisted to his father that he had just seen her as a very good friend. It got to the point that he lied to Thranduil that he did not see Ruby as a girl sometimes because of the way she had participated in the wars and fights and was "just as good, or if not, better than any other Elf soldier that I fought alongside with."

But Thranduil knew his son better than that. The way his only child had looked at the female Cold One. The way he spoke to her, the way he kept glancing at her throughout the dinner last night, and especially the way they both returned in the dead of the night, not knowing that their little outing had not gone unnoticed.

Thranduil sighed while staring out the window at parts of the city. It was bustling with life as stores opened up for business, and the Elves were going about their duties.

He did not mean to be such a strict parent to a child who was obviously old enough to think for himself, but as a parent, he could not help worrying.

It had been like that throughout history - in the eyes of a parent, a child will always be a child. This was not an issue with Humans and their finite life spans but was a problem with immortal Elves; it was not uncommon that the relationship and authority between the Elf child and his parents blur over the sands of time.

Either he had foreseen the possible, or Legolas himself had not realized it yet. The worst possibility that he would not like to imagine at all was that Legolas had already fallen for the girl but was lying to his father.

As a child, Legolas had been dependent on him ever since his wife had departed for the Undying Lands. He did not like the fact that the son he raised would intentionally keep the truth from him.

He sighed, not knowing what to do.

"Only time will tell." He murmured softly to himself.

Legolas strut down the hallway, too deep in thought to even acknowledge the maidens and guards who bowed to him as he passed them blindly.

He admitted to being quite unsure about the way he felt towards Ruby. No doubt she was beautiful to behold, but many other of the Elf-Maidens were comparable in that area and one thing for sure, he had no lack of fine-looking ladies for company.

He did admit, however, that there were times he wished everyone would just disappear. Or rather, he and Ruby could disappear to somewhere quiet, where there was nothing else and no one else to distract them. And then there were times that he guiltily wished that Castril would just disappear.

He stopped midway, a smile appearing at the corners of his lips as he turned and started walking again towards the direction of the guard wing and a particular room where the duty roster was scheduled.

It was a sunny day.

After escaping from their little 'accident', Castril and Ruby had wandered to the stream that bubbled through most parts of Mirkwood, merging with the other little streams to form a bigger lake that eventually flowed right out to the sea or so Ruby assumed; there had to be an outlet for all that water.

She closed her eyes enjoying the warmth of the sun on her cold hard skin. It had been a very long time since she could do that, moreover in front of another being who is not a Vampire.

It was not just because of the way her Vampire skin would glitter under the sun but also because Mirkwood was usually covered by thick canopies of trees that grew so closely together that it blocked out most of the sunlight.

Even with eyes closed, she sensed Castril approaching from her right. She caught a whiff of a floral scent, probably from another flower that Castril had picked. Her eyes opened just in time to catch his hand holding the flower, reaching out to her ear.

He tucked it right above her left ear and patted her hair in place to make sure that the flower stayed right where he left it. With a satisfied look on his face, he dropped his hands to his sides again and stepped back to look at her.

"For a guy, you do have quite an obsession with flowers." She observed.

"And for a lady, you do seem to have a lack of it." He remarked.

Ruby rolled her eyes, making Castril laugh.

"Why do you always do that?" He asked.

"What? You mean this?" She rolled her eyes again, more dramatically.

He nodded, and Ruby finally understood that Elves are probably too patient to get annoyed with each other to illicit such a response.

She tried to put it in words. "You… do that when someone annoys you."

"Do I annoy you?" He asked, looking quite shocked and hurt.

She waved her hands quickly. "No, I mean, to annoy in a friendly way. Like the way Seth always does."

He frowned in thought, trying to understand her point of view. "Well, but I do hope that I do not annoy you as much as Seth. I recall clearly that there were quite a few times you were on the point of murdering him."

"You know what?" Ruby said as she took a step nearer to Castril. "Maybe I should murder you now. To save me the trouble in future."

Castril returned her with a look of mock horror and ran away with Ruby chasing after him though she did so with a much slower pace or else she would have caught up with him already in the blink of an eye.

Their chase led them back to the castle and almost bumping into Legolas as he was making his way down the stairs that ran along the entire length of the entrance to the Palace.

He was rudely taken aback by the scene though it was a common sight that playful Elves, regardless of their age, were often spotted engaged in such childish behaviour.

Maybe his father was right after all. He did have feelings for Ruby to a certain extent. She had given him a tendency to have unexplainable mood swings and right now, this was one of it.

He expertly kept his anger under control though he had no justification for the source of his fury. Castril chose at this moment to hide behind him, putting him in between Castril and Ruby.

"Legolas," Ruby said, remembering to sound out of breath from all the running. It had been quite a good sprinting distance from where they were, and back to the Palace.

She noticed the insincere smile that the Prince returned her but decided to ignore it for now. _He probably isn't a very morning person,_ she thought, _even though the morning was more than half over._

"I was just intending to kill Castril. Would you like to join me?" She asked, hoping that it would evoke a change in the Prince's mood.

He shook his head and she did feel rather disappointed. "I am about to make my way to the armoury to conduct an inspection. If you would excuse me..." He side-stepped the both of them and continued on his way.

Ruby hated his sudden odd behaviour and found herself very disturbed by it although there was no reason to, firmly believing that she was not part of whatever that had put Legolas in this foul mood. She hoped that whatever it was, Legolas would have it sorted out by the end of the day.

But she was wrong.

Legolas ignored her entirely throughout lunch, disappearing for the rest of the day.

Ruby found herself caught in a whirlwind of activities. There were people to meet, royalty to be introduced to, and even a tour of the city by Sivia himself, whom Adam said was the equivalent of a Prime Minister in the government of their world.

The next time Ruby even thought of Legolas was only when she was settling down for dinner in the Dining Hall.

To avoid staring at the dreaded food that she would have to force down her gullet, her eyes wandered once again to the other diners.

She looked at them one by one, easily recalling all of their names as they had been introduced to each other earlier in the day.

And then her eyes fell to Legolas and the earlier episode made a playback in her mind.

She must speak with him before she accidentally left him out again.


	18. Chapter 18: Return

Chapter 18: Return

She stared hard at him, willing his eyes to just flicker up to look at hers. He looked indifferent though she could sense he had noticed her watching him intently.

_Now he's making me look like I did something wrong,_ she thought.

She came to the conclusion that it definitely had something to do with her and Castril. Legolas was perfectly normal before that, even during breakfast. Or had King Thranduil said something to his son?

She turned her eyes to look at the King, a gentle-looking Elf but with an authoritative air about him that commands respect. The King caught her gaze.

"Is the food alright, my Lady?" He asked full of concern for Elves are known to take their role as hosts very seriously.

"Perfect! I do not think food can taste better than this." She replied him with a smile, half-raising to her feet and holding up her cup to indicate a toast.

"Believe me, it could get better." Thranduil replied with a laugh, clinking his chalice against hers.

As she settled back down on her chair again, she mentally crossed out the possibility that Thranduil had a part to play for this sudden isolation.

She looked at Adam as he nudged her elbow gently. She leaned over to him to hear what he had to say.

"Ruby, correct me if I'm wrong but did you and Castril do something?" She shook her head. "Anything at all?" He probed further.

"There is this awful cocktail of emotions that I'm sensing and it's coming from… well, you know where." He finished his sentence, with his eyes fixed on a certain someone whom Ruby had been staring at a little while ago.

"Castril and I were just fooling around this afternoon. He saw us. And I guess he became like that ever since." Ruby explained in a low voice.

"I don't get it." She added.

"You don't get what?" Adam asked.

"Castril is just a friend. Legolas didn't have to get so uptight over it." She was getting frustrated.

Adam leaned further in, making it even more impossible to eavesdrop on their conversation. "Perhaps I was too engaged in my diplomatic visit, but is there something I'm missing out on here? So you mean to say you do like him then?"

"Who?" Ruby inquired.

"Legolas!" Adam raised his voice a little to make his point.

It had to be quite loud because Legolas instantly looked at their direction.

Adam, as versatile as ever, diverted Legolas' attention quickly enough. "I heard that you are one of the most skilled archers of Mirkwood. Would you care to share your skills? I would be pleased to be able to witness one of the best in action!"

Now Ruby felt that Legolas was purposely ignoring her more than ever, for he actually smiled at Adam's little praise. She unintentionally overheard Adam and Legolas earnestly agreeing to meet at the archery the following morning.

Here he was, an Elf who was easily delighted, actually angry enough to ignore her presence. She gripped her fork tighter, but was careful not bend the innocent piece of cutlery.

Dinner crawled past as there were a few speeches and announcements to be made. Apparently dinnertime was one of the best times to pass a message out to all the residents and staff within the Palace. It was their medieval equivalent of broadcasting email.

As she sensed the dinner coming to an end since the King was always the last speaker who declared the dinner officially over, she kept her eyes on Legolas, not allowing him out of his sight.

Once it ended, like students filing out of the class in messy groups, she rushed to catch up with him though she could already sense that he did try to leave the dining hall quickly. But it was not quick enough for her.

Right outside the hall along the corridor, she caught one of his hand forcing him to turn around and face her.

"Can I speak with you?" She asked, at the same time reprimanding herself for appearing so desperate.

He nodded his head and stood where he was.

"I mean in private." She emphasized, not appreciating the crowds that were still leaving the dining area as well as the helpers clearing the used tableware.

"I do not see why there should be any reason for us to speak in private." He added coldly, eyes narrowed into slits like he was talking to someone he detested a lot.

Ruby never thought it possible but she felt like someone had stabbed her cold dead heart, making it hurt. She looked away, trying to will away the pain but caught sight of Adam standing quietly behind a pillar, observing.

He shook his head from afar and Ruby got his message. She decided not to implore further and make things worst. Legolas may not only end up being angrier with her, but he would also probably add the word 'Annoying' to the list of reasons to ignore her as well.

She stared at him as if it would help her understand his feelings better. "As you wish, my Prince." she said, finally giving up as she curtsied and disappeared from his sight as quickly as she could, not wanting to remain an eyesore.

As she walked back to her room with Adam quietly trailing behind her, her desperation turned to anger.

What right does Legolas have to treat her like that even if he was the Prince of the Realm they were in? Who is Legolas to her, for her to owe him an explanation that there was nothing going on between her and Castril? And why is he making it so hard for her to just explain it to him?

She felt the unjustness in the situation and also realized that she had already reached the door to her room. She hesitated, not wanting to go to bed so early and then having to pretend to sleep all the way till dawn.

"Would you like to take a walk instead?" Adam suggested, sensing her uncertainty to enter the room.

She nodded her head.

Legolas stood from his balcony, staring at the beautiful glowing moon and wondering what on earth had gotten into him to treat Ruby the way he had.

The moon illuminated the garden clearly, and he could plainly make out two figures hand in hand, walking towards the garden bench.

It was Adam and Ruby.

He felt even more guilty as he noticed how as the two figures took their seat, he could clearly tell that Adam was comforting his sibling from the way Ruby leaned against Adam's shoulder.

It was inexcusable, to treat a lady as such, but he had no idea why he would just flare up the way he did whenever she was around after seeing Ruby and Castril looking so happy and perfect for each other. He tried to recall whether she looked as pleased when they were together alone.

For his part, he was filled with joy every time he got to spent time with her, especially during the occasional times when they had some time off alone. But happiness was not the only feelings that Ruby stirred up in him.

He wished it was him who was comforting her, and he wished it was his shoulders that she was leaning against. But if it really was him beside her on the bench right now, then they probably would be arguing instead. The thought of it made him smile wryly.

Legolas looked at the two figures that had almost simultaneously straightened their backs as if they were hearing something.

He glanced at the same direction that they are looking at. Were they able to hear something he could not?

And there it was, clear as day, a group of elves moving towards the city at a quick pace. A messenger sent ahead of the pack was already running up the stairs.

Wondering what had happened, he rushed out of his room to where his Father was, knowing that the messenger would make a beeline for the King's study.

Adam and Ruby ran from where they were seated, slowing down only when they finally caught sight of the approaching group of Elves.

"Hey!" Seth shouted from the centre of the group, before he was knocked out of breath by a very thrilled Ruby who gave him a bear hug while Adam ruffled his hair.

"Why did you two come back?" Ruby stepped back and asked, taking a good look at her buddy.

"I missed the both of you. And I'm not the only one." Seth answered.


	19. Chapter 19: Uncertainty

Chapter 19: Uncertainty

"When will it be held?" Thranduil asked in a calm voice.

"A week from now." The messenger replied. "Lord Elrond specifically stated that there should be no reason for absence."

Thranduil stood up from his seat, thinking as he took a few steps forward.

"Very well. Legolas will go in Mirkwood's name." Thranduil said. The messenger bowed and left the room.

For a split second, Thrandruil had wished for his sake that the messenger would rest for the night before rushing back to Rivendell. The post of a messenger was getting more and more difficult as times got darker.

Messengers often found themselves on paths fraught with peril, neither having the privilege of time nor a bringer of good news.

But, first things first, he had to break the news to Legolas.

_I wonder how he would react to this, _he thought. Legolas rarely had been sent on missions that would take him as far as Rivendell.

As if on cue, Legolas appeared at the doorway to his study, having ran all the way.

"There you are, my son. Come in. I have matters for you to attend to."

"She misses the both of you very much. Carlisle could not do much to appease her." Seth said solemnly.

"It's not like the others are at home all the time. She's never worried about them!" Adam said.

"I guess so. But I must tell you it took me a rather long time to even convince them that this was the truth. They thought I was joking at first and that the two of you would return a little while later. Emmett even camped out for half a month or so, waiting for your return so he can pounce on me when you two really got home." Seth said, his mood having improved considerably at the thought of an increasingly impatient Emmett. "He eventually gave up. Unwillingly, of course, because Rosalie was dragging him off."

Ruby stared at the ground in quiet thought. Finally, she spoke "It feels like a long time has passed, hasn't it?" Adam and Seth both looked at her.

"We were here for just awhile, but yet we are so preoccupied with this new world that we had forgotten about ours." She acknowledged.

"How long do you think we would have stayed if Seth hadn't returned to remind us?" She asked Adam bluntly.

He shrugged his shoulders. "But I agree, it would have taken me a very long time before I would even want to go back." He admitted.

It was too easy for this to happen. The Elves were a happy and contented Race. Their way of life was so much less complex. It probably had to do with the occasional Orc attacks taking place that led them to appreciate more the simple things such as a peaceful and quiet life.

"You know what? Maybe we should catch some of the damn Orcs back with us." Adam had once suggested playfully. "Then maybe humans would be too preoccupied with keeping the Orcs away rather than fighting each other."

Ruby had shook her head in disbelief; such a childish thought coming from one who was usually the most mature among the three of them.

"I hope you are not thinking of bringing any Orcs back with us, are you?" She asked, breaking the silence that fell between them.

Adam snorted. Seth lay lazily across the bench, his tall frame was too lanky to sit comfortably on the petite bench.

"Let's go back." Adam finally decided. "We could come back to Middle Earth any time we want, right?"

And so it was agreed between them that they would come back together somewhere in the near future.

Legolas stared at his father in astonishment.

He was firstly recovering from the minor surprise that the messenger was actually from a different company from the one that escorted Seth back.

Secondly, he was to leave Mirkwood in two days if he were to reach the Council at Rivendell on time!

"Would you like me to break the news to her? Or would you prefer to do it yourself?" Thranduil asked his son with a twinkle in his eye.

As rude as he may get whenever he was around her, Legolas knew that Ruby still deserved to be informed by him personally that he was leaving, although it would probably be only for a little over a week.

He was upset with the sudden change in schedule, and upset that he had to start this childish little fight that would have probably caused her to avoid him like crazy.

She must be also feeling a little clueless about the way he was acting right now.

"I will tell her myself, Father." He replied him, but his mind was already planning on how he should even initiate a conversation with Ruby after the bad encounter she had with him.

He took his leave and proceeded back to his room, but this time, walking at his own pace.

_Ruby, I know that I have been acting cold towards you but, I will be leaving for Rivendell soon…_Legolas shook his head. What an unusual way to start!

A part of his mind was screaming about how silly he was by acting the way he did, although it was a little too late now. Instead of treasuring the time they had together with Castril 'unexpectedly' loaded with multiple duties, he had to act like an idiot and push her away.

Now that he needs to leave Mirkwood, he was sure Ruby would then find her next closest Elf friend in the Woodland Realm; none other than his own best friend, Castril.

It was the dawn of a new day, with Thranduil being pleased with the addition of a new guest overnight, a shape-shifter, a kind with whom he had never had acquaintance with.

Seth's childish appeal entertained Thranduil tremendously. His speech, his actions and his 'live demonstration' of his transformation had kept the Court transfixed.

However, other than the arrival of the new guests that delighted the residents of Mirkwood, especially those in the Palace, another observation was made: the tension between Legolas and Ruby.

It was too noticeable that the two were no longer talking and chatting with each other, or running off on secret hikes.

Even Castril, in the midst of his guard duties had noticed it. But apart from a few greetings exchanged with his best friend and Ruby, he had not much time to dwell on the matter.

Castril knew he should be feeling glad about this sudden change. But the fact that his best friend and a girl he had great respect and admiration for was not getting along disturbed him so.

There was just about a week to go before his ridiculous never-ending duties ended (the overseer had blamed it on the lack of manpower). He should be able to do something by then, secretly hoping that things would not escalate out of hand. But it should not be able to, because he had heard news from among the guards that there was an urgent request for assembly at Rivendell where Lord Elrond presides and he had an uncanny feeling that Legolas was to represent Mirkwood for the meet.

Maybe then he could confront Ruby without any disturbances; to catch up and get to the root of the problem.

Ruby smiled along with the crowd of people who had just witnessed the transformation for probably the 100th time but yet are still ooh-ing and aah-ing in amazement as if they were seeing it for the first time.

_Don't these people ever get bored?_ She thought, and then shaking her head mentally, realizing her mistake.

They are not people. They are Elves; Elves who had all the time in the world.

She was very aware of Legolas' presence in the same hall, and made sure that she carefully positioned herself in such a way that she did not notice him at all. She was awkwardly facing Adam and pretending that talking to him was more interesting than looking at Seth.

Adam, however, was not helping, for he himself was too engrossed in clapping and cheering for his transforming buddy, who thoroughly enjoyed all the attention lavished on him and is now attempting to do jumps and snarls and mock attacks to impress the crowd further.

Legolas and Ruby definitely would not have known that the situation would not improve, what with Legolas carefully thinking and planning what to say to her yet chickening out at the last minute, and her, carefully avoiding Legolas to prevent another harsh disagreement.

"You're leaving too?" Seth asked incredulously.

"Too?" Legolas asked.

"Yeah. We'd be leaving soon as well. But since you are leaving tomorrow we may as well journey out together." Seth said, stretching his long arms out and yawned so loudly that Legolas wondered if he was able to part-transform himself to sound like a wolf.

"Esme, who is Adam and Ruby's mother, is uncomfortable with the idea of them staying on in Middle Earth. She's probably afraid that they would not return, so I volunteered to come back and 'retrieve' them." He grinned. "In fact, I was almost rather worried that Esme would come here herself!"

Legolas was dazed by the news. Was that it?

He wonders if he was experiencing the same feeling of loss as Esme had went through. But his was impending loss. At least he was advantaged because he was forewarned about it.

A grand farewell dinner was set up hurriedly. But the quality of food was not compromised, or so Ruby guessed, judging by the way that all the Elves were digging into it heartily.

Seth admitted to telling Thranduil that they had to leave. Thranduil was extremely understanding towards it,.

He would not deny that it did crossed his mind several times how the skills and efficiencies of these Cold Ones in battle could have placed the Elves of Mirkwood at a very much advantaged position, yet he knew how it felt for a parent to long for their child's return. He had been a King long enough and had seen enough battles to understand what Esme is going through.

The announcement the King had made prior to the start of the meal was just as shocking for all. Everyone thought that the farewell was meant for their three guests. No one would have guessed that Legolas had to leave so soon as well.

There were hushed whispers as to the cause for such a sudden departure and whether it was related to Gollum's escape for they did not suppose such urgency from Rivendell.

The irony of this situation was that as this particular piece of news was being announced, Ruby realized how Legolas' eyes connected with hers over the crowd.

The dinner crawled by. Legolas resolved to speak to her immediately thereafter but as everyone left the dining hall, he was surrounded by well-wishers and friends who wanted to know what was going on.

Ruby stood solemnly at a side while Seth and Adam thanked those who had cared for them during their stay. Somehow, Ruby was quite annoyed that Claemar had not said anything to her but was speaking to Adam instead, flirtatiously.

The slightest thought she had of thanking Claemar for all her help flew out the window.

Ruby was sure Adam could make up as a better 'thank you' gift so she would just allow Claemar the time to speak with her brother.

Anyway, Claemar might not get the chance to see him ever after because they may never decide to come back since it worries Esme so.

And ever after is a very long time. Her eyes flew across the room at Legolas. What about Legolas? Was she never going to see him again?

She stared at him from afar. He was speaking to the other Elves, obviously engaged in civil conversation that he could not get out of.

He seemed to realize that she was looking over because his eyes met hers once again.

She looked away hastily. She was willing to leave it at that. They only had one more day left in Mirkwood and it would be easier for her to leave if she and Legolas were not on good terms anymore.

After Adam and Seth walked her and Claemar back to their chamber, she entered it and slumped down at the common area where the lounging chairs are.

"My Lady, you must be tired!" Claemar exclaimed.

_So, she remembers my existence after all,_ Ruby thought. But she did not blame Claemar. Any ordinary female would have been swept off their feet for even Ruby could tell that Adam did not need to be a vampire to charm the opposite sex; he was already a very good looking guy to begin with.

She pretended to look tired and fatigued as Claemar scuttled in and out of the rooms eagerly to prepare her bath, humming a tune as she went along. It was difficult not to notice that Claemar was in high spirits after speaking so much to Adam.

Then came a knock at the door.

Ruby rose to her feet but Claemar offered to open the door before she could take another step.

As the door was opened, a gust of wind happened to enter the room as well.

Instinctively, Ruby took a deep breath to see if she could tell who it was at the door.

It was the smell of freshly cut grass.


	20. Chapter 20: Till We Meet Again

Chapter 20: Till We Meet Again

He stood there, seemingly unsure of himself while Claemar stared back at him.

She bowed to her Prince and turned to announce his arrival to Ruby.

"My Lady, Prince Legolas is here to see you." She called out so that Ruby could hear her from where she was resting.

She turned back to look at Legolas, knowing that he would prefer to be left alone with Ruby. "My Lord, I will be in the room if you or Lady Ruby needs me."

Ordinarily, she would have lingered around to find out more, but not today. Today was the last night that they were going to stay, and she would allow them that little bit of privacy they deserved.

Claemar shrugged. Maybe she was feeling extremely generous, or rather, her getting to speak to Adam so much earlier on had really cheered her up considerably. As she made her way back to her room, she smiled happily as she recalled the evening.

Ruby did not make any attempt to rise from her seating position even as Legolas entered.

Part of the reason was that her anger had not subsided. The other reason was that there was no reason to; Legolas is not her Prince. Not even the Prince of her heart, she thought bitterly.

She did think, however, that he deserved a smile in greeting at least. It was nice of him to initiate communication once again by bothering to come all the way to find her, so he deserved some actions from her to make the whole situation less awkward.

He smiled back, appreciative of the friendly gesture.

"So you've decided to talk to me again?" She asked, unmistakable sarcasm in her voice.

He winced slightly, knowing that Ruby would not let him off so easily. It was indeed rude of him, he admitted, and he did deserve some sort of harsh treatment. He had expected it.

"Ruby, I am guilty for not being a good host but I do hope that we could put aside our differences. At least for tonight?" He asked hopefully.

She patted the empty space beside her, signaling him to take a seat.

He did so, but his eyes never left hers because he was still waiting for her response.

He seated himself along the same chair but there was enough empty space between them that could sit another person.

"You are forgiven for being a poor companion, Prince Legolas." She said in a polite tone. She waited for him to say more but apparently he did not. "And if there is nothing else, I would like to take a bath now." She got up, while expecting him to leave.

"My lady, I shall remain here and wait for you to be done." He stated, making it clear it was not a question. He would do so.

Ruby rolled her eyes as she proceeded to her lovingly prepared bath. With it being her last night in the Palace, Claemar had added a lot more flower petals into the bath waters than she usually would, and the glorious scent of flowers was dancing around even before she stepped in.

She swiftly removed her clothes and settled into the warm water. Nearby stood a wooden pail full of hot water for her to add in when the water temperature got too cold for comfort. She poured all of it in, wanting to feel more intense warmth. Any other human or Elf would have been badly scalded but it had no effect on her.

She could not steer her mind away from the fact that Legolas was still in the common room, waiting for her return.

She even pondered about whether she should purposely take a long time, in the hope that he would give up waiting for her and leave. But yet again, curiousity was slowly winning out. She was extremely curious as to why he had bothered to find her. Was it because they both had to leave and he wanted to end everything on a good note?

Would he have bothered to do the same if none of them was leaving yet?

She got quite irritated at the last thought. Yes. She was quite sure he would not have bothered to make up if they were not leaving. The thought that Legolas was treating this as some sort of corrective action to make himself feel less guilty was making her mad.

Since he wants to be such a diplomatic Prince, she would help him feel less culpable and pretend that nothing, absolutely nothing, ever transpired between them.

She got out of the bath, dried herself and slipped into the fresh night gown hung beside her towel. Claemar had also thoughtfully left a shawl nearby and Ruby took that with her as well to cover herself better.

As she wrapped the shawl around her, Ruby took a deep breath and stepped out into the common living area once again.

She would have very much liked to kick herself for her inner struggle – a part of her expected and very much wanted to see the seat empty already, yet the other part was hoping for the fact that he had stayed on so that she could see him or even be in the same room with him for the very last night.

Elves were more patient than she gave them credit for. Truth be told, Legolas would have continued waiting even if she took another 3 hours to reappear.

As she moved closer to rejoin him on the same seat, though at the farthest corner away from him, she noticed how his glazed over eyes resumed their liveliness as if he had awakened from a deep trance.

Yes. Days in the forests had already exposed Ruby to the fact that Elves do sleep with their eyes open. But there were times she actually noticed that some of them closed their eyes. Especially those who reside within the city.

Castril had told her that there was not much difference sleeping with their eyes open or closed. It just happened to be. Like, you may sometimes wear a normal shirt to sleep, or you may sometimes wear your pajamas. It was a rather absurd analogy but Ruby did understand what Castril's point was.

But he did add further that Elves were more prone to sleep with their eyes open, logically as a means of springing into immediate action should they meet with unexpected circumstances, like some pesky Orcs.

One interesting point that Ruby noted was Legolas chose to sleep with his eyes open despite being in his own palace.

Was he afraid that she would sneak past him? She smiled at the thought. She didn't have to. All she had to do was to walk out of the bathroom adjoining to her bedroom, and go straight to bed. Or pretend to.

She only noticed that her thoughts had indeed curved her lips into a smile when she noticed Legolas smiling back at her.

For awhile, it seemed like all had been forgiven and forgotten as she nagged at him.

"Legolas, go to bed already. You're tired!" She said, as she took her seat.

Legolas shook his head stubbornly.

"Okay then," She resigned herself to her stubborn companion. "What was so important for the Prince himself to make his way to his guest's chamber in the late of the night?"

He did not speak. In fact, he was looking at his hands as if they were the most interesting thing in the room right now. Ruby admitted it was a joy to marvel at his hands. They were slender and long. Despite having to camp in the wilderness all the time, they looked like they had just been through a manicure. Each nail was short and clean. Not a trace of his forest patrols could be seen, yet Ruby knew Legolas was not the arrogant type of Prince. She had witnessed him at work, and he was just as hardworking and busy as any of the other soldiers, albeit one of higher authority.

_Maybe they do have their own manicurist. Some sort of royal manicurist that works for the royal household and does nothing but manicures day in and out. _

She mentally slapped herself for her wild imagination.

"Legolas?" She prodded. Patience was running thin along with the increasing curiousity, though not to the point of aggravating her. Yet.

"I have a million things to say to you." He finally spoke, while looking up from his hands and straight into her eye.

She was startled for a split second at his sudden speech. She continued looking at him questioningly.

Legolas continued.

"It's just that when I am finally in front of you, everything just disappears from my head totally." He fell silent after his statement.

Now Ruby understood clearly what Legolas found so interesting earlier on when he stared at his hands, for she was staring at hers intently as well, for her normally quick-witted mind was at a loss for words at Legolas' confession.

Her hands were not much interesting, but rather, dropping your line of sight to stare at your hands was an easy and comfortable way to avoid the piercing stare of the other party, and in this case it was a cute blue-eyed Elf.

She had no need to avert anyone's gaze like that for usually she was the party that was directing those dagger-like stares. Humans were so easy to intimidate whereas Elves were so irritatingly difficult; especially one like Legolas who had managed to slip past the defensive walls that every Cullen had built up around themselves to keep away from humans.

She admitted to liking him as a buddy. She knows that Adam felt the same towards Legolas (and possibly every single other soul he has met as well). That's two Cullens down. Nine more to go.

_No. _

Ruby thought.

_There is no longer reason to return, much less let Mirkwood Elves set their sight on another 'Cold One'._

Thankfully enough, the Elves did not appeal to both her and Adam. But she did not want to risk bringing the other Cullens here. 

"I hope you will wait for me." Legolas finally said.

Her head snapped up to look at him again.

"What?" She mouthed. Forgetting to breathe, there was no air in her lungs to emit any sound.

"I do have feelings for you that I cannot put into words." Legolas spoke, his voice getting softer by the moment as if he was more and more unsure of himself. Or maybe he was just plain shy about confessing.

Ruby would have found it such a joke. How could anyone who looked as good as an Elf even have issues with their confidence? Unfortunately, right now she did not find it in the least funny because the joke involved her as well; how could a near-perfect Elf even be remotely interested in her when in her world, humans and vampires are not.

"You're joking right?" she asked, her eyebrows arched. Maybe Legolas was just going to jump on onto the seat, laughing and screaming out that he was just trying to see my reaction.

A few seconds of silence past. Legolas had not even moved an inch, much less jump around and tease her about how could anyone even like her.

"Legolas." She began more seriously now. "I'm leaving. We're leaving. And we're all leaving tomorrow."

He tilted his head to a side, obviously unable to comprehend what she was trying to say.

"You are indirectly telling me right now, on the eve before I leave Middle Earth, that you would like me to wait for you. On top of that, this is happening right after you ignored my existence totally."

She had gotten up from her seat and was pacing about back and forth.

"Is this some kind of sadistic joke?" She hissed.

"I just wanted to make my stand clear. And to admit that I do not understand why I am acting different and peculiar whenever I am around you. Will you not stay?" He repeated, getting more and more annoyed himself and sounding more desperate.

"It's not possible." She stated plainly, and then tried to ignore the sight of Legolas grimacing from the rejection.

"Then go back, and assure Esme you're safe and sound. And then come back!" He insisted.

"It's not just about that." She answered him. Her mind thought of the many other dirty secrets she and Adam were keeping from the Elves. Not just about the fact that they don't sleep, but also their very unusual diet of fresh blood.

"Then what is it?" He persisted.

She put her arms around herself and fidgeted uncomfortably while looking around the room that she will not be coming back to, probably for the rest of her immortal life.

"Legolas," She began in a soft and dangerous voice. "There are many things that I cannot share with you. Things that may disgust you. Things that might make you perceive me differently if you knew about it."

"Then tell me!" He exclaimed. "Share it with me and you will know for yourself if my feelings towards you will change!"

She scoffed.

"Legolas, you are not even sure of your own feelings!"

He stood up from his seat. "Yet at least I would give it a chance, for better or worse. You are simply giving it all up!"

"There is nothing to give up on!" She retaliated, eyes flashing with anger.

"Is that what one would say when they are barely even trying?" He snapped back at her.

Out of sheer anger, Ruby was contemplating whether she should just attack him straight. In fact, the tension and hostility between them was raised to a level where Claemar was pondering whether or not she should intrude even if it was plain rude to.

But certainly, it was not easy to continue pretending that she could not hear a thing when the two were seemingly shouting at the top of their lungs.

She decided to open the door. However, opening the heavy door quietly was no easy task.

The sound of the creaking hinges reminded Ruby her position as a mere guest of the kingdom. To attack the Prince even without seriously wounding him would have made even the most gracious and accommodating kingdom to go on the offensive.

"This conversation is going nowhere!" She declared, and stomped off towards her bedroom door.

Legolas replied by doing the same, except he walked out of the main door instead.

Both doors slammed at the same time just as Claemar finally reached the common living area only to find it empty.

It was weirdly quiet and peaceful as if a storm had just passed.

The early morning sky was barely lit when Legolas made his way down the stairs. He noticed from the corner of his eye a few figures leaving his father's chambers but paid no heed to it, disregarding them as probably some of the Palace staff who had just cleaned the Study that his father spent a lot of time in.

He sat down at the table as breakfast was being served.

It was hard not to notice that there were a lot less servants around.

"Where is everyone?" He asked one of the junior Elves who was busy placing cutlery onto the table.

He bowed politely while Legolas frowned. He had all intention to do away with Palace courtesies in the future when Mirkwood was under his rule after his father had sailed to the West.

Meanwhile it would do well to continue trying to change his father's mindset about these bowings and greetings as they were a hassle when one wanted information immediately.

After he bowed and greeted the impatient Prince properly, he replied him, "My Lord, they are at the front courtyard to attend the sendoff for the guests."

By the time he spoke of the word "sendoff", Legolas had already took off running.

Whether he did it intentionally or not, Ruby was just plain glad that Legolas had not been present at all the entire morning.

Feigning their way through with the excuse that Esme was not feeling well, Adam lied through his teeth to get them out of the palace as early as possible. Ruby had not need to make much known to her brother, for he had sensed her immense discomfort.

It did not take a genius to guess that it had something to do with Legolas. He had sensed him acting weird towards the end of their stay.

The only difficult part was trying to get Seth to control his laughter, for Seth found it extremely amusing to even imagine Esme feeling ill. The closest he had witnessed was Esme being worried for her foster children. But ill? Where did that come from?

He almost chuckled out and gave them away, though his solemn expression immediately resumed when Ruby shot a look at his direction.

_Seth, oh Seth. _Ruby thought to herself.

_It could very well be the end of the world and he would be still laughing over something silly._

It was unfair though, to leave so abruptly. King Thranduil insisted that some of his guards escort them back.

Strong as the Cold Ones and their shape-shifter friend may be in battle, any King would be extremely embarrassed to send their guests out alone, especially so in these dark times.

No amount of persuasion from Adam's part would change Thranduil's mind, so Adam finally succumbed to the King's stubbornness.

When Legolas finally reached, everyone was all ready to leave.

Adam and Seth were easily identified from the crowd for they were in the weird dressing they were wearing when they first met.

Ruby should not be far…

He scanned the crowd desperately.

She was indeed not there. But Legolas was certain, from the empty horse next to Adam that it was not because Ruby had changed her intention and decided to stay.

"Where is the lady?" He asked the guard who was standing nearest to him.

Without a word, the guard pointed to a direction that Legolas had missed out.

And there she was, but she was not alone.


	21. Chapter 21: Farewell

Chapter 21: Farewell

With her back facing the crowd that was preparing to leave, she looked up at Castril.

"Thank you so much. For everything." She said, and she sincerely meant it from the bottom of her heart.

Castril simply smiled back.

There was not much to say. And like a good friend, Castril did not want to enquire too much, like whether or not she will return.

They hugged each other and to Ruby's surprise, she even had to tiptoe in order to reach her arms over his shoulders.

"You know, Castril, I never really noticed you were that tall." She said, while still being embraced.

"My dear Ruby, I never really noticed how short you were either." He joked back, and they laughed.

However, metres away from this light exchange between two good friends, was a volcano about to erupt.

If this was what Jealousy is, he was ready to admit it. To shout it out. Scream it out. Internally, of course.

But what made him feel worse was that even if he was brutally honest with Ruby about his feelings, she would just reject or side-step around the issue.

He had held on to the fact until his tired mind drifted off to sleep, that despite last night's negative response to his confession, she did not reject him directly.

She mentioned that she could not wait, and that they both were leaving, but not in any way did she say that she did not reciprocate his feelings.

But whatever lingering threads of hope he had felt were suddenly snapped; possibly along with every blood vessel in his body.

He was mad alright, at the sight that greeted him.

It had been quite some time that Ruby laughed so outwardly.

Even when they were together going on those long walks on excuses of fetching water or sightseeing, she had only spared him a few mesmerizing smiles.

_Why did it have to be Castril? Why is it always Castril?_

He thought madly as he calculated on whether he should interrupt the pair who was still exchanging parting words.

Years of battle had toughened Legolas to the point that he was able to display a cool façade whenever he needed to. To not freak out or scream in terror at whoever your enemy is, and whatever your enemy throws at you.

Yet for today, the lesson learnt was that you do not need to put on this mask just to save your life, apparently you need to so as to prevent yourself from going up and killing a good friend whom you have known your entire life, over a girl whom you know less than a year… for what was a year to an Elf?

While lost in thought, Castril had already noticed Legolas standing by the corner.

He was silent. Anyone else would have thought Legolas was just politely standing at the corner so as to allow some privacy to those who were bidding farewells to each other.

But Castril could not miss the flashes of cold fury in Legolas' blue eyes.

It was a look that made him drop his arms to his sides.

Ruby was quite shocked at the sudden lack of warm arms around her. She shot Castril an inquisitive look and noticed he was staring at something in the distant.

The strong breeze was not in her favour that day; she failed to pick up his scent.

The only scent she picked up was one of the happy Elves that dwelled in the capital of Mirkwood. The sense of happiness in Mirkwood is contagious. Especially on days where the weather was good and where they do not have to hide the fact that they glittered under the sun.

Adam did discuss with her during their time there that the glitter lotion lie was so effective, they may consider using it back at Forks when they have returned. The ever-resourceful Alice would definitely be able to find something on the market that gave a similar effect.

Moreover, right now, she did not feel like being a quarrelsome bitch like she was last night. Maybe the Prince was right in trying to patch their weird relationship before they both left. It was better for the both of them to leave good memories behind rather than end on a bad note.

But that was it. That was all the intention she had in mind. To end this visit well. Not start another more complicated one.

Castril bowed and left them to rejoin the group that was still mingering around. He thought it was weird that there were far too many Elf-Maidens present during this particular sendoff though it did not take long for him to guess the reason behind it

She smiled at Legolas from afar.

There was no response. Neither did he budge from where he stood.

Her smile faded from her face.

Slowly, a slight frown appeared on her forehead. And then a very slight pout.

This finally initiated a response from him. Legolas broke into a very slight smile. Ruby would have missed it if she wasn't paying close attention.

How could he not laugh? This was the exact facial expression she gave when he thought it was amusing to splash some water at an unsuspecting Ruby.

At that point in time, he found out for himself that female Cold Ones did not really like to travel in wet boots. He was dreadfully guilty for making the lady travel without her footwear. And then this sense of guilt was multiplied another few hundred times when Adam had to carry Ruby on his back as they continued the journey.

Ruby knew there wasn't much time left, and that smiling at each other stupidly from afar only served to make both parties look silly.

She walked with great strides and at her speed, she was standing right in front of Legolas in no time.

"Hey." She greeted him cheerfully.

"I did not know of your intention to leave so early." He answered her back, but thankfully not in an accusing tone.

Ruby almost rolled her eyes but managed to control herself in time. She had not expected hostility at that moment, but she certainly did not see the sarcasm coming.

"Adam's idea. The earlier we leave, the earlier your escorts can make it back here in time. At least it'd be safer for them." She explained to him calmly.

Legolas felt slightly offended by her statement, though it was well-meaning.

He said, "We are grateful for your concern, my Lady, but our soldiers are capable enough to take care of themselves, moreover they are not burdened or obligated to ensure the safety of the guests."

She breathed in sharply as if to draw breath and retort back at his allegation, but decided to hold back whatever she intended to speak.

She exhaled, silently this time.

"Well, the bottomline is, you are here right now because you would like to send us off?" She asked.

"Would you have believed otherwise?" He said, with an arched brow.

"I'm glad you have not lost your sharp tongue." She smiled back and said.

Before Legolas could even think of how to reply her, she stepped forward and promptly reached around his neck while placing her head onto his shoulder.

It was amazingly comfortable. His height was perfect and so was his build. She had no need to stretch uncomfortably to reach him.

For the first time in days, their thoughts were the same.

Legolas automatically placed his arms around her waist and pressed his face into her neck.

It shocked him when Ruby pulled back from him.

Pulling back was an understatement. It was like she recoiled from him in terror, making him wonder if he had did anything wrong because he had obviously not spoken anything during the hug.

He stared at her in wonder but she gave nothing away about her action. Her face was still friendly and smiling back at him.

The friendly hugs were probably the closest physical encounter allowable by her standards. Anything more and it made her uncomfortable. None of the Cullens, not even Adam, had the audacity.

Sure they had always put their arms around her, though it was more for a strangulation purpose due to some smartass comments she had made, but that was about it.

The physical proximity was not just because of safety reasons (for in case she felt like succumbing to the temptation of warm human blood), but that a vampire's own neck was also something that they were protective of as well.

Basically, if you (were supposed to) go around attacking living beings by their necks, it is only natural that you are sensitive to allowing others near yours.

Seth often joked that Ruby was very anal about anything to do with her neck. Ruby's defense was that those were two very different body parts and they had nothing to do with each other, though she would be glad to offer her services if he had wanted to make any sort of body modifications to connect one to another.

But there it was that her pet peeve actually shocked Legolas.

She could not bring herself to blame the Prince for being surprised at her reaction. Yet it was not her fault for how was she to know that he would try to burrow into her neck?

The thought of it would have given her goosebumps if she was not trying so hard to act like everything was normal.

"I thought I heard Adam calling for me. I think we are about to set off already." She muttered some last-minute reason that popped into her mind.

He nodded in understanding, somehow accepting this explanation, and then proceeded to watch in amazement as Ruby walked the great distance to rejoin the crowd.

_How on earth could she have heard Adam from here?_ He wondered.

Ruby was wrong when she thought that everyone was waiting for her to leave.

The majority of the crowd (which consisted mostly of maidens) were reluctant to leave Adam's side, such that Ruby only could see him clearly when she swiftly swung herself up on the same old horse that served her well during the journey to Mirkwood.

She had cast a look at Seth's direction and noticed that he too, had been allocated the same horse which was thankfully so used to his wolf scent that it seemed to barely notice the way the other horses shunned away from him.

She held onto the reins of the horse and patiently waited as the sun rose higher and higher into the sky, casting its lovely warmth over the group of Elves, horses, a vampire and a shape-shifter that were standing in front of her.

She was actually quite enjoying herself observing each and every one of them while they remained oblivious to her presence. Ruby knew that she ought to be feeling a tinge of sadness at this farewell parting but she was always known for her senses having this weird delay of emotions.

She would probably start feeling really sad when reality hits her that she would not be seeing Legolas or Castril again. Or rather, Castril and Legolas again.

She shook her head from side to side in an almost unnoticeable movement, refusing to admit that she was always thinking of Legolas first when it came to the two. Castril is also a good, if not, better friend!

Out of the corner of her eyes, she noticed that another group of riders joined them. Already knowing who they were, she refused to look at them and acknowledge their presence, choosing to remain ignorant of it for as long as she possibly could pretend to, trying to attribute it to her imagination.

Tried as she may, her efforts of mentally willing away the sight of the riders and hoping that they would just disappear into thin air unfortunately did not work.

On top of that, Seth just had to verbally declare the obvious "It's the Prince and his company!"

"My Lord? The King made no mention that you would be riding out with us." Dhother said.

"He does not know. Yet. But he soon will. I would guess that the stable hands would have already sent someone rushing to him." Legolas said, with a playful crooked smile.

Before Dhother could protest further, Legolas lifted up his hand to stop him.

"I will not pay any heed to further protests, dear General. For I see no reason for the Elves of Mirkwood to witness two farewells when one would do. We will leave for Rivendell early." He stated, and Dhother did as he commanded.

There was no arguing with the Prince when he starts speaking like one. Young as he may be, he was still Mirkwood's Prince. His Prince. And one whom every soldier including himself was entrusted to respect and protect with their very own lives. It was not a one-sided sacrfice though, because he knew that Legolas would not hesitate to lay his own life down for his kin as well.

Soon, the horses were ready to move off as the last of the riders mounted their respective horses.

Legolas, who stood at the forefront of the party raised an arm and signaled them to move out, while Thranduil stood from the window of the study, observing them. There was a faint smile upon Thranduil's lips despite the seriousness of this journey that his only son had to make to Rivendell.

He was unusually glad at this opportunity for his son to forge diplomatic ties with Rivendell in his place. Orc-slaying aside (he had long knew of Legolas' skills and proficiency in this area already), the King saw it as a part of training for the next ruler of Mirkwood that he had not been able to provide for adequately.

After days of hike, the trio came chanced upon a formation of rocks. It was one that they were too familiar with because it was Adam's own artistic creation entitled 'the subtlety of Mother Nature'. Ruby could only roll her eyes when Adam named it whereas Seth threatened to turn into his wolf form and pee on every rock that made up the formation.

Those were happier times because at that very exact moment, they were in an opposite situation. The difference was that right behind them was a horde of orcs that had decided to make these weirdly strong yet human-like creatures their next meal.

"Seth! Get the Elves away!" Adam shouted at Seth's general direction.

Even Ruby could sense the reluctance in her currently-canine friend as the beast hesitated from its stand and ran the other direction where the clanging sound of weapons could be heard from where Adam and Ruby stood.

"Follow me!" Seth shouted in desperation at the Elves who were withstanding the attacks.

:"Hold!" Legolas shouted at his men to defy the orders of the young shape-shifter.

"We will not be able to run from them for long!" Legolas shouted over his shoulder while engaged in battle, to a surprised-looking Seth.

Seth was defenceless in his fragile human form in nothing but his versatile tights, the only piece of garment that kept him clothed whenever he morphed back into his human form. All this, while pathetically trying to avoid the paths of swinging axe that a maniacal orc was repeatedly swinging towards his head.

Seth looked around taking in the surroundings and calculated the risks involved. Legolas was right. Half the elves had their horses severely injured and were locked in battle while on their feet.

There was no way he could move all of them safely and quickly to the lake.

Seth had already guessed what Adam's plans were: to move the Elves beyond the two vampires so that the immortals would meet head on with the Orcs while the Elves moved to safety.

And there they would disappear into the lake immediately after the fight in exactly the same way they came by; without a trace.

They finished off the 5 careless orcs that had chased after them, carefully laying their heavy smelly bodies further away from the water.

Ruby casually swept off some dirt from her palms as she looked up.

"Why is Seth taking such a long time?" She called out to Adam.

Adam looked up towards the direction where the sounds of battle continued. "We should go take a look." He suggested, but before he moved an inch, he raised his right hand quickly to catch an arrow that was flying straight for his face.

The archer responsible for the arrow was soon taken care of by a flying boulder courtesy of Ruby. The beast gave a loud grunt before landing motionless on the floor, weighed down by the huge rock.

She stuck her tongue out as Adam looked at her, and then they both turned their concentration back on their enemy, each trying to outrun each other to reach the Elves first.

It did not take very long for them to reach for the Elves and Seth were not too far off in the first place. As Seth had also observed earlier, most of the Elves were only on their feet, with the horses having already fled in terror at the brutal attacks of the enemy. The orcs attacked blindly for they were too barbaric to be able to ride horses to travel and thus had no need to spare any in battle.

To the vampires, it was easy to pick a fight with Orcs. Despite the clear advantage in strength and size, they were still no match for the steely vampires who were only too glad to put an end to the misery of these creatures. But what was difficult, as Ruby and Adam came to learn, was how to properly interfere into a fight between an Elf and an Orc in order to not get wounded by accident.

It was never easy to block off an attack from both an Orc and an Elf together. It was not due to issues of safety for vampires are indestructible (almost). They just did not want to make any Elf guilty of trying to stab their guest.

They had no choice but to wait for an opportune timing to intercept the fights between Elf and Orc while getting rid of those extra Orcs who entered the battle.

So it was during this that Ruby picked up something Dhother had whispered in a harsh and urgent tone. She did not understand a word of it for he spoke it in the mystical Elf language that she stayed around long enough to learn; but it was clear that it was some sort of instruction to the Elves.

Her mind quickly deciphered the only possible meaning to what Dhother had commanded.


	22. Chapter 22: Battle

Chapter 22: Battle

All the imaginary 'arrows of logic' in Ruby's head pointed to only one thing. And that one thing… is Legolas.

She understood why Dhother had hastily instructed, probably to whoever within hearing range, to go to the Prince.

The group that had originally fought side by side became dispersed as they had dismounted and as the battle commenced further.

Legolas was a skilled fighter, but even the best warrior would fall at the sheer numbers of the enemy.

Ruby had found it weird because fatigue seemed to be taking over the Prince as he started faltering. His steps were unstable and his deflections from the clumsy attempts made by the Orc were getting slower and slower.

For awhile, she contemplated if the Prince was just being arrogant for he always managed to avoid the hits at the very last second, and then she realized it was not so because the Orc's sword came too close for comfort and managed to make a neat slice across the Prince's sleeve. Thankfully it was only a small cut.

But whatever luck that Legolas had which kept him out of harm's way was indeed running out, and fast, for another Orc was quickly approaching Legolas from the back with his sword going straight for him.

Without hesitation, Ruby rushed forward and was beside him in the blink of an eye.

There was no time to think about anything else but to push Legolas out of harm's way.

It was true that exhaustion was taking over him. This fight was taking longer than he had thought. He knew he would have handled it much better if it had not been for the lack of sleep.

He would have finished off by beheading the irritating orc in front of him but the brute was dangerously swinging the heavy sword around like a 5 year old child with a weapon. Legolas had been waiting for a good chance to retaliate but fatigue was overcoming him. It was not like he was going to drop down onto the floor and go to sleep, but more like he find himself not as alert as he should be.

This thought was confirmed when he was wounded by the enemy, though it had been just a small graze of the blade against his arm.

Other than during the vigorous drills and practice that he had been put through since young, he had never sustained injuries within battles. He found it amusing because tired as he was, his mind could still wonder about what the King would say about this recklessness.

The feeling of sheer adrenaline that was always present in such battles were not enough.

Suddenly he felt something brush up against him. He was certain of this because he felt a gust of cool air.

Just as it dawned on him that it could only be Ruby, he felt the air knocked out of him as he was violently pushed by an incredible force, causing him to lose his balance and he fell.

He could only look on helplessly at Ruby as their eyes connected.

The two orcs standing directly in front and behind her were already leaning forward to propel their swords forward, with the malicious intention to stab their victim with full force even if this female human was standing in place of the Prince.

Ruby pulled her eyes away from Legolas and very quickly twisted the arm of the Orc standing in front of her.

The sword dropped harmlessly to the floor, but quick as she may be, there was nothing she could do as the other sword plunged neatly into her back with a sickening sound, impaling her until it stuck out of her abdomen on the other side.

The Elves turned around in horror at the direction of the scream as they recognized the voice as the Prince's.

It was easier for Adam to deal with the Orcs, now that the Elves had their attention diverted.

Judging from the volume of the scream, Adam deducted that Legolas could not have been too badly injured. Even if he was, he learnt that Elves recovered well and quickly enough to survive through very serious injuries.

He finished off with the last Orc by an expert twist of the neck and looked around at the Orc bodies littered around the forest floor. Even with Seth and Ruby's help, it was going to take some time to pile all of it into a heap and burn it, as the occupants of Middle Earth often do so.

He had felt it was a very responsible and respectable thing to do. It would have been extremely revolting to chance upon rotting Orc bodies when going on a random hike through the beautiful forest.

"Adam!" Seth shouted.

Adam turned around to look at his friend looking solemnly back at him.

Instinctively, Adam took off, looking for his sister amidst the bodies.

It was a gory sight.

Legolas was on the brink of insanity with a severely injured Ruby in his arms.

Her blood was everywhere. From her wound, and some of it was sputtering from her mouth. The pain was causing her to twitch uncontrollably.

The physician stood gravely beside, unable to do anything. He had already given his answer by shaking his head when Legolas pleaded with him to do something, or anything, to relieve Ruby's pain.

Adam found that he had to squeeze through the crowd that had gathered around his sister. When he finally got to her, he kneeled down and examined her wound.

"Just this?" He asked Legolas, pointing to the sword that was awkwardly sticking out of her front.

"Is it not enough?" Legolas asked incredulously, his voice breaking. The Cold Ones were new to him in terms of behaviour and language. Legolas was pleased at the cultural exchange and in getting to know this new Race better, but right now he was beginning to suspect that they were heartless as well.

Adam leaned in closer to Ruby and whispered, though it was loud enough to be heard by all those that had gathered round.

"I'm going to remove this. It's going to hurt." He spoke to her.

Throughout the involuntary spasms of pain that rocked her body, it was clear that Ruby nodded her head to give consent.

"That would kill her!" Legolas attempted to shield Ruby away from Adam in protest and had to be restrained by Seth.

"My Lord, she would bleed to death!" The physician agreed with his Prince.

But Adam did not even bat an eyelid as he smoothly guided the sword out of Ruby as if he was drawing it out from a scabbard. He then dropped the weapon aside and skillfully lifted her up from Legolas' arms.

He carried her and started running towards the lake, followed by Seth and the Elves who were still recovering from the shock that the blade had already been pulled.

With her eyes closed and brows knitted in pain, Ruby was gently laid down beside the water. With the exception of Adam and Seth, everyone else had looked extremely relieved that she was still able to survive until then.

Legolas had regained most of his composure and was sitting quietly some distance from Ruby. He found himself afraid to go nearer to her.

Other than her blood-soaked clothes, she looked just as if she was in a peaceful sleep and anything he did to her might just wake her up. But he will not deny that he was more afraid that touching her would not create any reaction from her.

Is she actually dead or resting because of the injury? He could not tell because she did not even look like she was breathing.

He lifted his sight to focus on Adam and Seth instead. They were much closer to Ruby than he was, and if she were dead, these are the people who would turn hysterical first, not him.

It was a good thing that they were cool and calm, for everyone else was observing their response too. Adam was pacing back and forth, as if waiting for something to happen. In fact, he actually only looked mildly worried about Ruby.

Seth was worse because Legolas was extremely certain that he saw a corner of his lips twitch as if trying to control a smile. Maybe they reacted to this trauma by turning hysterical immediately; totally skipping the mourning or crying process.

But all these weird thoughts flew out the window when Ruby moved. His eyes quickly flickered back onto her, to assure himself that there was movement; she was alive.

There was no doubt. Her right hand lifted up from the ground and she slowly placed it protectively around her stomach near to her rib where the blade stuck out earlier on.

She took a slow but deep breath and exhaled. And she was not the only one who did so for everyone who was holding their breaths heaved a sigh of relief as well when she breathed in again, less deeply this time.

It made him grimace to think about the intensity of the pain she must be going through right there and then.

An hour must have passed.

The wounded have all been attended to, save for Ruby, who was still left quite alone beside the lake.

Legolas had his attention on her all the time, observing every slight movement of hers; whether or not it is a slight flickering of her lashes, or the sometimes tensed up and then relaxed shoulder of hers located nearer to where the sword had pierced through earlier.

He had given up scrutinizing from afar, for her signs of breathing, coming to the conclusion that Ruby must have been very badly injured that her frail and weak breathing signs were hardly evident. Even though he hardly blinked, he was beginning to realize it was almost impossible to spot any such signs from Ruby.

Those who were still able-bodied were standing guard on their two feet, watching the trees for any possible movement within the forest.

All was quiet, save for a while ago, when Dhother was almost trembling in anger as he reprimanded the scouts who totally missed the big party of Orcs that laid in ambush.

The only thing that kept the old captain from shouting at the guilty scouts was because he was afraid of disturbing the seriously wounded Ruby whom he would frequently cast a worried glance at.

The sun was shining brightly with the occasional strong winds that rustled through the forest. It was a lazy afternoon where no one could have guessed that a small-scale battle had taken place earlier, especially when the area was greatly disturbed by the loud snoring of Seth.

Needless to say, the loud sounds emitted from the tall and lanky teenager earned him countless dirty stares from the Elves. Even patient Adam was trying his best to ignore it and to control his feet from walking over and giving a mighty kick to wake Seth up.

Legolas jumped up to his feet when Ruby made a sudden movement again. This time, both her hands were outstretched.


	23. Chapter 23: Run

Chapter 23: Run

The wound was almost completely healed, though it still felt tender and she was careful not to move at all so as to quicken the recovery process.

Finally when she felt infinitely better, she raised both her hands and stretched fully, testing to see if the new skin that had materialized and glazed over her wound was good enough to allow her movement once again.

Ruby could not help but let out a small smile. It felt great. So did the feel of the sun on her face. She could feel its warmth even without opening her eyes.

And then it became dark, as if somebody stole the sun away.

Wondering what happened, her eyes flickered open and she found herself staring straight into the face of a very worried-looking Legolas.

Seeing her eyes open, he quickly got down on his knees and leaned closer towards her.

"Ruby, how are you feeling?" he asked, his face full of concern.

She looked back at him, her mind wondering when was the last time they actually had such a decent and calm conversation with each other.

"Ruby?" he asked again, reminding her that she had not replied to his previous question.

She did not really feel like saying anything for fear that it might disrupt this temporary truce between them. She just smiled at him reassuringly but otherwise remained quiet.

However, Legolas interpreted it as a 'not okay' sign and was signaling to the Healer again. Ruby found herself sitting up really quickly and holding a hand up as Legolas tried to stop her.

"I'm alright." She said to him, her voice coming off a little more horase than she expected.

"No, you are not." He argued back.

"But I am!" she stubbornly refuted.

"No one would have been alright after what just happened." He exclaimed.

Ruby rolled her eyes. There it goes again. Maybe she should have played dead. She really did not think that Legolas would find any joy to debate with a corpse on whether the corpse is feeling 'alright'.

She decided that if he was going to remain so quarrelsome, she would have no choice but to totally ignore him.

She jumped to her feet with relative ease whereas Legolas could only watch on, openmouthed. Absolutely no traces of her injury remained, other than her evidence that stained her clothes a deep crimson red. The stench of blood radiated strongly from her.

But she did not have to go far. Thoughtful Adam had already placed a fresh set of clothing out for her to change into.

The other Elves could not take their eyes off of her, wanting to witness her every move. Wondering if their eyes were playing tricks on them, they quickly turned their eyes away as they realized that Ruby was about to change behind a tree.

Naked, she looked at where the wound was supposed to be, somewhere under her left ribcage. It was quite well-healed already. She drummed her fingers at the site of the wound to see if it still felt tender as a newly-healed wound should be.

It felt weird, alright, but she knew it would soon pass. Another few more minutes and it would be as if she was never injured at all.

As she hooked on the last button on the clean blouse, she dug a hole with her bare hands, effectively breaking through the hard-packed ground as if it was as soft as flour, and placed the blood-soaked ones inside before covering it with dirt so that no one would be able to chance upon it easily.

The clothes were already torn from the way the injury was inflicted, and bringing home blood-stained clothes was probably one of the last things in the world she wanted to show Esme.

But Esme wasn't difficult and bothersome. Or as quarrelsome as the figure that lingered nearby with his back towards her.

Obviously, after having coming to terms at her amazing speed of recovery, Legolas expected some sort of explanation.

Her first thought was to gamble on her chances of success if she sped away. She was almost sure of at least an 80% chance of success. But then even if she did run away this time, there was still the 100% chance of having to face him again soon.

Not unless she jumped straight into the lake and emerge back into her own world. Her rightful world.

Then again, there was this very high possibility that the Prince would jump into the lake after her, probably with the thought that she had 'lost her balance' and fell into the water.

_No_, Ruby thought_. If I have to face him, so be it. What is an Elf when we Cullens face pesky humans on an everyday basis? _

Now, where is Adam and Seth when she needed their counsel?

Adam and Seth were long kept in a private discussion.

For the longest time, there was only one worry on Adam's mind, after the novelty of the discovery of Middle Earth's existence had worn off.

It was how to keep it that way; a secret. One that was forgotten, for good.

As much as Seth's quirky and creative imagination had gotten him into trouble, he was sometimes the one who comes up with unexpectedly good solutions.

And right now, his suggestion was to dump all the rocks that they had painstakingly all around, into the lake.

It started off as a joke. But Adam liked the sound of it.

"You must be kidding, right?" Seth asked incredulously. "I wasn't serious when I said to throw all the rocks in!"

"No. I think you have a point there." Adam said, with a finger thoughtfully rubbing his chin.

"For one, no one would accidentally stumble into our world. And vice versa." He continued.

Seth nodded in agreement.

"Second, the ones who know about this secret path, could always come back!" He exclaimed, flexing his muscles to further bring across his message.

"Well…" Seth began. "I guess Middle Earth is quite a fun place after all. I wouldn't mind it one bit." Seth paused and looked around, spotting a distinctive figure hanging around uncomfortably in the distance where he knew Ruby was changing.

"And besides, we have to make sure Elf boy there gets to see Ruby again." He jabbed his thumb in their general direction.

Adam responded with a wry grin "Okay. I wouldn't be too sure about that." He said, after catching a glimpse of Ruby's disturbed expression as she peered at Legolas from behind the tree.

She made careful sure to mess up her clothes slightly.

It would not look 'right' to look impeccably neat after having a sword stabbed cleanly through you.

She even considered on whether she should stain the new clothes with a bit of blood, for the bleeding had not only stopped, the skin had healed.

Taking a deep breath, she took a step forward bringing herself closer towards Legolas' back view as she also made a mental note to reject the Healer's kind offers to look at her now nonexistent wound.

"Hey" She greeted him, with less cheer and spirit. Inside her mind, she was repeatedly chanting the word: wounded… wounded…wounded.

"Are you alright?" He asked for the umpteenth time. Finally, this question that he had repeated was going to get an answer.

It was truly difficult. Too strong and he'd start asking questions. Too weak and he would immediately signal to the Healer to come take a look at her. She knows because she could sense the watchful eyes of the Healer from afar, ready to spring towards her as soon as his Prince gives him the permission to.

"Do I look 'not' alright to you?" She asked, trying to lighten the mood between them.

"I was worried." He frowned, looking genuinely angry.

And then the unofficial interrogation started.

It had to begin somewhere, and Ruby surrendered the first piece of information. It was technically correct; that the Cold Ones healed fast. As do shape-shifters, though Legolas was surprised that Seth's kind was blessed with the gift as well.

Then came the predictable question; do the Cold Ones ever die in battle?

Ruby was not taken aback by the question. The startling pace at which they heal and recover was definitely not overrated. It was part of the package of immortality, but of a vulnerable kind.

Countless vampires would do anything to lead a quiet and forgettable existence just so that it ensures their safety and continuity.

But truth was, when it all boils down to a head-on confrontation between the Cold Ones, especially when it involves a young, rash and impulsive Newborn, a fatality happens easily enough. Not that Ruby hadn't witnessed any for herself.

She felt her chest constricted as she thought back to the day when her transformation happened. As with most transformations, it started off as an attack. Not by another man, but by a predator.

Ruby shuddered to think of it. Her recollections of being a newborn were vague. But as soon as she was conscious of what she had became, she had sworn off human blood altogether. And rather easily too, especially with Adam's help.

When they were introduced to the Cullens, Carlisle was convinced that it had to do with a new and gradual mutation of the vampire strain; a natural evolutionary process that had recognized that a successful and long existence is only possible with less, or ideally no dependency on human blood at all.

And then he launched into a 500-page (and counting) thesis on attacks on humans and DNA and genes and whatnot. Ruby was guilty of not paying full attention when Carlisle tries to engage all of them in these talks.

School-related work she could comfortably cope with alright, but if it is not going to be in the class test, she was not prepared to even feign interest in it.

He sat down gracefully onto the floor. It would have not looked any different if the floor was a tall dining chair. Without turning to look at her, he gently patted the grass next to him, signaling her to take a seat as well.

She did.

It would have looked absolutely ridiculous if she were to just take off and leave him alone there though the flabbergasted look on his face would have made it all worthwhile but she decided maybe she should leave it for a next time. IF… there was a next time.

The strange stares from the other Elves have subsided, now that they are certain that Ruby is well and still alive. Their main attention was focused outwards in case some other new attack was launched. They would not allow another mistake again. Not within a day.


	24. Chapter 24: Reality

Chapter 24: Reality

She was the last to emerge from the water. From the mere smell she knew they were back. Back in the real world where they belong to, though it was one where they had to hide their identity and where the humans of the world wouldn't buy their story about shimmering body lotion that makes your skin sparkle like jewels.

But at least they were back in a world where they were no too-beautiful-to-be-true Elves that threatened to steal your heart away everytime you look at him.

She shook her head to move herself mentally away from the thought of piercing blue eyes that eerily belong to Legolas.

Though she was rather young for a vampire, she was still half a decade old, making her as experienced as a middle-aged human. Yet she found that it was still difficult to differentiate between actually liking a person, or purely thinking that a person is good-looking.

_Is the thought of that Elf actually giving me goosebumps? _

She got out to remove her hardy hiking boots to turn it upside down, pouring out whatever water that was collected in it.

She half-wondered which world did that water belong to while Adam and Seth moved out, getting ready to race back home.

It was an informal and sudden opportunity that they stole away from their hosts.

Despite the trillion of times that Adam had diplomatically insisted their hosts leave them to continue on their journey to Rivendell, Legolas would not let them out of their sights.

It was impolite of them to do so, Legolas had protested.

So when the Prince finally left the three of them to make plans for the hunt that would feed a group of Elves, Cold Ones and a shape-shifter for the next few days, they seized the chance.

Or rather, Adam and Seth did.

Without warning, they had plunged in after making a jump that would have broken the Olympic records for long jump distances.

It only took a split second for Ruby to react and do the same.

The trip to Rivendell had seemed one of importance and urgency. This was obvious enough even for the guests to tell. The good thing about them disappearing like this was that Legolas would finally give up on deviating and would be able to complete the matters at hand.

Legolas would certainly take a pretty long time to forgive her. It was good to know that Elves were immortal for it would take a long time before she could even think about going back to Middle Earth again.

a/n: I know this ending is abit short and abrupt and all. But seriously I haven't found much time to continue all this though I would have very much liked to make this story go on forever (and bore some of you to deaths in the process, haha!) Truth be told it's a little difficult having to update the stories via a mobile phone.

Keypads of mobile phones aren't exactly meant for use over a prolonged period of time, such that I could actually feel my thumbs getting numb.

I'd also like to start a (hopefully less naggy) story that belongs to a more modern era. I'm having trouble relating to Middle Earth again. I sometimes mix it up with the Roman / Victorian / ancient-civilisation culture that I do not think accurately describes the Elves, or Middle Earth, in general.

So keep a lookout okay?  Thank you all for your support! Just receiving notifications that you guys have added my story to your update list already makes my day!


	25. Part 2: Chapter 1: Reminisce

Chapter 1: Reminisce

It had been a year since Ruby, Adam and Seth made their way back.

Esme was worried sick, if she had been physically capable of it. She made them promise not to go off too far to hunt alone again since the 3 of them were the perfect ingredients for a recipe of trouble.

Hunting trips exceeding Forks' borders were disallowed to them for the longest time.

But now that the incident had seemed so long ago, Adam and Ruby found that they could sneak off to further places. However, it was not without the supervision of their older siblings.

Ruby could not deny that the sight of blonde hair and piercing blue eyes would make her pay more attention to the particular person. It would then begin, a mental comparison inside her head, of how the person resembled or do not resemble Legolas.

The increasing longing to see him again began to eat at her. She hated the way when she would do something and it would lead her to think of him.

She had never outwardly spoken of it but the Cullens could tell there was something troubling her. The worse thing was knowing that questioning would get them nowhere, they did not attempt to.

Edward, of course, could tell straightaway. Ruby's thoughts were clear and loud. And simple, too. She wanted to see someone again, though he do not know who it is. But that someone had to do with a trip that Ruby had back then that made Esme fatigued with worry for almost 2 months.

After their return, Ruby had been the quietest among them to speak about it and relate their experience to the rest. It was almost as if she would rather choose to avoid the topic.

She was happy to be back at first. Thankful that they were among shy and ignorant humans once again and not the more intellectual know-all Elves who made immortality seem stunning and beautiful. She found herself appreciating humans all and opening up to them more readily than before, resulting in a few more good school friends, which was all the better to occupy her time with.

She was vexed with herself sometimes. Of course, she had to admit that she did get jealous of all her siblings at times. They were attached and partnered. She could not help but feel left out at times even though there always was big brother Adam. But at least even he managed to find someone whom he had a huge crush on, and that was the lovely Tanya.

She drummed her fingers impatiently on the table while pretending to pay attention to the TV in the living room.

Major examinations were just over last week and she was extremely bored. The life of a vampire can be pretty boring.

Esme was grocery-shopping, probably with Sam's wife, Emily. She took forever whenever she does because technically, Esme shops to feed a whole pack of wolves.

Ruby felt it was a good thing because Bella had once told her that the Kitchen at the Cullen's house was never in use before up until the wolves started having regular meals at their place. She could never imagine the state-of-the-art Kitchen (if there was such a thing) not being in use.

Carlisle never ever held back expenses when it came to the house renovations, which Ruby had to admit, was a rather frequent thing.

For sometimes when the brothers were fooling around, there would usually be a broken door or a hole in the wall that needed professional help.

She made her way to her room and as she closed the door behind her, she leaned back against it and sighed.

Her mobile rang as a text message was received. It was from Esme.

The message read: Home tonight? They are coming for dinner.

She keyed in her reply.

_Where else could I be? _She thought bitterly.

It was after the exams and all her friends were more busy than ever, taking odd jobs to save up for vacations or something expensive gadget that they were aiming throughout the school term.

Ruby knew she was lucky because she never had to wait on tables or work tiring shift hours to get what she wanted. Money was never a problem, and honestly there was nothing much that a Vampire could want or need, she thought, and a pair of blue eyes flashed in her mind once again.

She jumped into her bed. The sheets still smelt fresh and clean. Not surprising because sometimes the bed sheets could be changed up to two times in a day when Esme gets really bored.

It would be 3 times a day when Seth came to visit, to get rid of his stench.

Seth, and she smiled at the thought of him, would always jump into her bed to take a nap and at the same time, achieve his lifelong goal of irritating her by snoring. That guy also had absolutely no sense of privacy.

Ruby closed her laptop shut and decided to make her way down. Realising it was late afternoon, she decided to take a look to see if Esme needed any sort of help though she was quite sure it will not be necessary with Emily around.

Esme and Emliy had gotten to know each other after the Wolves started having dinner over at the Cullens' house. It was not difficult to figure out that 2 cooks are better than 1 when feeding the wolves. The food prepared was probably enough to feed a small village.

With the vampires now centred in Forks, there were also more wolves appearing within the Pack.

Ruby had long lost track but at last count, there was probably close to 30 of them, yet their appetite was comparable with 150 hungry and desperate people.

As Ruby reached the stairs, she decided to float downwards instead, just for the sake of using her special talent that was otherwise useless.

It was good she did that, for she eavesdropped on Esme's conversation with Emily.

"I'm worried about her." Esme confided.

"But I remembered you mentioned before that she's much better around humans now, isn't she?" Emily replied, as Ruby could hear her moving about the kitchen, probably in the midst of preparing some food.

"That's one thing, but there's this thing about her that I can't put my finger to it." Esme said, and Ruby could almost hear her frowning as well, judging by the tone of her voice.

"Since Edward had already hinted to you that it had to do with that trip a year ago, maybe you should let her go back." Emily said. There was silence in the kitchen and Ruby knew that they had stopped whatever they were doing to talk.

She froze in mid-air, unsure of whether she was supposed to go back to the top of the stairs and walk down 'noisily' for them to notice, or should she just stay at where she was and continue hearing the discussion that was obviously about her.

She thought, _Maybe, I do want to go back to Middle Earth. Maybe I want to go back much more than I thought!_

She was quite ashamed that it had to take another person to make her realize that.

She whirled around and sped through the air back to her room without waiting to hear Esme's response. Now that Ruby was sure of a return trip, the problem was how to go about approaching this sensitive topic to Esme.

It was another hearty dinner. Everyone was gathered at the huge dining table regardless of whether or not they are eating since it was the company that counts.

Jasper and Emmett had both once suggested that one day they would bring some live feed back but Esme and Carlisle would have none of it. Blood that wasn't fresh and warm was not good to taste. Moreover, it was quite a messy affair.

Ruby stood at the kitchen helping out by washing the dishes since almost every other lady in the household had a hand in helping out with the cooking while she hid in her room.

She felt someone coming up behind her.

"What's up, Leah?" She asked. It wasn't Leah's practice to creep up on someone like that.

"Nothing." She lied and made it sound nonchalant.

"Shoot." Ruby said through a smile.

Leah leaned against the kitchen counter and folded her arms. Her eyes never left Ruby.

"You know how I'm always the most grumpy and disgruntled person around here?" She started.

Ruby nodded her head without taking her eyes off the dishes she was washing.

"Yeah, well, you see, now I've lost that position to you." Leah said, throwing her hands in the air in pseudo frustration.

Ruby turned off the running tap and dried her hands, finally turning to look at Leah.

"Leah…" she began.

"No, look. Ruby, you look. I don't care what's bothering you, but it's bothering me as well, and quite evidently, everyone out there is worried about you." She interrupted Ruby's speech.

Leah added, "Well, of course, thankfully, you weren't as bad as how I heard Bella had been when Edward disappeared into thin air."

Ruby laughed. "Now, now. That's abit drastic isn't it? And let's try to keep Bella out of the picture before she overhears this."

"Already did!" Bella's voice reached them through from the dining room.

"I've heard Seth talk about this Legolas guy. Or was it the other one who's making you the way you are now?" She paused as she tried to recall what Seth had said. "Either way, get your sexuality figured out first, will you? I heard they're just a bunch of pretty boys."

"They're more than that! But anyway, just keep them out of this conversation, okay? Esme's going to start firing away questions if you even remind her about this."

"Okay. But do you intend to return?" She asked, not giving up until she got her answer for the most vital question.

"Eventually, the answer is yes." Rub replied, quietly. "I would love to see Middle Earth again. And more of Middle Earth this time." And she turned around to continue with the dishes.

_A/n: Yes. I'm assuming that the War of the Ring and the entire journey travelled by the Fellowship about a year's time in terms of Planet Earth's calculation (If I'm not wrong in Middle Earth it was supposed to take about.. 3 years or so?)._


	26. Part 2: Chapter 2: Glittery

_A/n: 2 things. Thank you and Sorry. _

_Thank you all for your reviews __ I appreciated it. I really do. And sorry for the confusion. Yes, Forgotten Lake rightfully should be a completed story since this is a Part 2. I just felt that if I hadn't uploaded it over there, none of you would ever find out about it. Moreover the part 2 would only serve to confuse new readers who had knew about part 1. _

_Oh yea. Excuses. I have aplenty. Haha! Enjoy! _

**Please note that Chapter 3 onwards will be uploaded to The Forgotten Lake Part 2. Thank you! **

**Chapter 2: Glittery**

Ruby should have noticed the weird silence that overtook the house when Leah started questioning her.

They were all eavesdropping to wait for her answer.

Soon as she gave it, Leah walked right out to collect her bets from the other Wolves as she slapped a high-five with her brother, Seth; the Cullens kept out of it since it was unfair when they had Alice and Edward to predict and sift the answer from Ruby's mind if it was necessary.

Carlisle put a comforting arm around his wife. Esme looked and smiled into the loving eyes of her husband.

"Are you okay?" He asked, concern filling his brow.

"Of course." Esme replied, but he was still not quite convinced of her answer.

"She's a big girl now. She can take care of herself. It's not like she will be going back alone." Carlisle reassured her. "In fact, she would have been a middle-aged lady if she did not turn."

Esme smiled at the thought. Her little girl as a middle-aged woman was unimaginable.

Ruby had always been a quiet child by Cullen's standards. Esme knew her reluctance to join the Cullen's family when they encountered the initial resistance. Anyone would have thought of giving up when faced with such hostilities.

But luckily for Ruby, she was paired up with the ever-optimistic and endearing Adam who looked out for her in every way and played a big part in getting everyone else to accept them. It wasn't that Ruby couldn't have done it alone but Adam quickened the process. In this aspect, Ruby was a lucky girl.

Esme would not deny that the fleeting thought of matchmaking Adam and Ruby together did cross her mind multiple times. But as with the unpredictable way Edward and Bella found each other, she knew she could not do much because sparks just did not fly.

She was delighted though, when Ruby confided in her one day that Adam had a huge crush on Tanya Denali. Though nothing had yet come out of it, she was still happy for Adam for having someone in mind to spend the rest of his life with.

But Ruby worried her. It used to be something that they worry over Edward when he could not find a partner. On top of that, Ruby was different. Everyone could recall a thing or two about their past lives before their transformation yet Ruby could never remember a single thing. Almost everyone of them had Carlisle there to remind them what they were like before they transformed. Even Alice's mysterious past was also tracked down to the Asylum while Jasper could recall his time spent with the vampire army, courtesy of his creator, Maria.

Esme was certain that sometimes Ruby kept so quiet because she was trying really hard to recall.

Did she have a family out there who was worried for her? What was she like when she was a human? What had become of her friends and family now?

As time passed and the decades rolled by, Ruby had never given up, because she knew that once she did remember anything, she was certain that she'd be able to track down whoever she needed to find out more about herself.

But that was only one of the worry that Esme was aware of. Now it was a second topic; Ruby's fascination with Middle Earth. Or rather, with a particular guy from Middle Earth. As if Edward's initial fascination and obsession with a human Bella was bad enough.

Adam had related their experiences in Middle Earth to Esme countless times, yet unfortunately there was no way he could properly describe the Elves. After being at a loss of words to properly describe them (since calling them beautiful actually served to confuse Esme even more) Adam once scratched his head and said, "I'd probably bring a camera the next time round to show you what I meant." At which Esme had reprimanded, as a mother would, "No, Adam. You're not going back."

Esme approached the door to Ruby's bedroom and knocked. After waiting a few seconds just to be polite, she opened the door slowly.

"Mom?" Ruby called out. She had returned to her room quietly after she was done with the dishes while everyone laid out in the spacious living room, chatting and lazing around.

Esme saw her adopted daughter sitting on top of the bed with her feet tucked under the thick blankets. It made her look delicate and fragile, like a little girl in need of protection.

Vampires never needed sleep but having a nice comfortable bed was Ruby's weird request for her bedroom when Esme and Carlisle asked her what she most wanted.

It doesn't serve to keep her warm since Vampires do not really care about the temperature at all, but it made her feel safe and secure as a personal bedroom should.

Esme walked over to Ruby and kissed the top of her head while enveloping her in a hug her.

"I know of your intentions." Esme said, and Ruby immediately lifted her head in surprise to look at her mother.

"Dad and I had a little discussion about this and… we both agreed…" She paused, while Ruby held her breath."… that our little girl is old enough to take care of herself. And besides, it's only right to reward her with a holiday after her examinations."

"You overheard us?" Ruby asked, referring to her little conversation with Leah. Esme, never a good liar, could only nod her head solemnly.

"But…" Esme added. "You're not going alone."

Ruby eyed her mother carefully. "Mom, please don't tell me that you and Dad will be tagging along?"

Esme threw her head back in laughter. "And what is wrong with your parents tagging along to take a look at your Elf friends? I heard they're quite a sight!"

"But no. Adam and Seth will be going with you."

Ruby breathed a sigh of relief, up until Esme added "Along with any of your siblings or other wolves who would want to join in."

Ruby could only smile back at Esme. She certainly did not mind returning with a whole army of Cold Ones and Wolves. The Elves would certainly appreciate all the help they can get with them around, that is, if Orcs and spiders were still a concern for Mirkwood.

"Mirkwood." She whispered under her breath. She was quite surprised that after such a long time of denial, she could still easily recall the name of the place.

"What kind of a lousy lie is that?" Alice teased Adam though one could detect a hint of seriousness behind her question.

"Well, how else could I have explained myself? Hi, I'm Adam and I was carved out of this huge piece of Swarovski crystal. Look at me shine!" Adam said, and flexed his biceps for the effect.

Alice sat at the living room with a hand against her forehead, racking her brains while her hands occasionally flew over the keys of the laptop that was placed snugly on a cushion in her lap.

"That's not the only problem we are facing." Adam said, softer this time, as he moved nearer to Alice so that not even the other Vampires nearby could hear him.

He whispered something into her ear but it was made known soon enough.

"Five hundred bottles?" She screeched. "Where on earth am I going to find 500 bottles of something that doesn't exist!"

"Oh come on, Alice. If there really were such a product, you'd be the only one among us who would know where to source for it!" Adam half-whined.

"Besides," he continued, "Look at all the poor Elves and Elf-maidens who would be so disappointed when I return without their magical glittery lotion." He said as he brought the back of his hand against his forehead, trying to be dramatic.

Jasper then hand-signaled to Adam to 'get out' or risk being attacked by Alice.

"Don't worry." Alice said aside to Jasper as he was still signaling. "I don't see that coming yet." She said.

It didn't take long but 500 pretty bottles of glittered moisturizer was quickly assembled. It was made up of the stickiest suntan lotion that Alice could find, and mixed with a huge amount of coarse glitter since the original ones on the market came with glitter that was too fine it wouldn't resemble a vampire as much.

It was tried and tested on Leah while she was in human form, and who was also eager to reclaim her Queen of Grumpiness title. The results were almost close, if not better, for she sparkled even without the presence of sunlight.

"It is quite uncomfortable, if you ask me." She commented.

"What can I say," Alice remarked. "It's all thanks to the ingenius idea of Adam's." She said, as she started placing the lotions in the huge cardboard box that the glitters originally came in.

"Oh come on, Alice!" Seth said, as he caught sight of her packing when he entered the house. "We're gonna have to go underwater! Cupboard boxes?" He whined.

"Look, Adam only said about the lotions. I'm not responsible for finding the perfect way to transport all 500 bottles into the hands of your Elf friends." Alice said without stopping. There were just a handful more bottles left.

"Not even for Ruby?" Seth pleaded with puppy eyes.

This made Alice pause her hands in mid-air, holding the last 3 bottles that she intended to pack in.

"Did I hear my name?" Ruby said as she dusted the few drops of rain off her waterproof coat just as it started to pour outside.

"Nothing." Seth and Alice said at the same time.

There was a flash of lightning followed by thunder.

"How could I have not sensed it. It's time for some baseball." Alice said, with an evil glint in her eye.


End file.
